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“WE'RE GROWN UP ENOUGH FOR GRANNY GOOSE”

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“WE'RE GROWN UP ENOUGH FOR GRANNY GOOSE”

BLACK PANTHER PARTY SUES GRANNY
GOOSE AND FIVE OTHER BIG EMPLOYERS
FOR VIOLATING CALIFORNIA'S "PAY WHILE
VOTING" LAW

MONDAY, NOVEMBER 6, 1972 PRESS RELEASE

The Black Panther Party filed suit today in Alameda County Superior Court against six large Oakland employers for violating California's "pay while voting" law.

The "pay while voting" law (Elec. C. SS 14400 & 14401) guarantees every employee who does not have sufficient time outside working hours to vote on election day two hours off work with pay. Employers are required to post notices of the law at their places of work at least 10 days before the election so that employees now of and can exercise their voting rights. But the Panthers have evidence that at least six big Oakland companies, who together employ more than 500 registered voters, failed to post the required informational notices.

Black Panther Party Leader Huey P. Newton said this suit "should help to show the entire Oakland community that we're grown up enough for Granny Goose, or any other big corporation that feels it can flaunt the law and keep its workers ignorant of their rights."

The Panthers' campaign to enforce California's "pay while voting" law is, Newton noted, a part of the Party's overall "voter participation survival program." This particular survival program has resulted in the Panthers registering more than 16,000 voters in Oakland alone since March, 1972. "But many registered voters may not go to the polls, especially if they work long hours, commute and have children" Newton emphasized. "California's pay while voting law was enacted to enable these kinds of people to vote."

In mid-October the Panthers commissioned a professional poll of Oakland employers that showed 69% of the employers did not know of the "pay while voting" law and 77% of the employers did not post any notice telling employees of their rights.

The Panthers then mailed letters with enclosed notices explaining the "pay while voting" law to more than 1,500 Oakland employers. "We just asked them to obey the law," remarked Bobby Seale, who is running for Mayor of Oakland in the April, '73 election.

This week the Panthers did a promised "spot check" on more than eighty Oakland employers and found that, while most had posted the notices they had been sent, many did not.

"I called the Attorney General's office on November 3, and told him my clients, the Black Panther Party, had just gathered evidence that this law was being violated" said Fred Hiestand, Public Advocates attorney who is representing the Panthers in this suit. "I asked if they could do anything to enforce the law, but was told that the AG's office was too overworked and understaffed."

Bobby Seale had earlier commended the Attorney General and Secretary of State Brown (California Attorney General Evelle Younger and California Secretary of State Edmund Brown, Jr.) in telegrams for publicly explaining the law to employers after the Panthers had asked them to do so. The Panthers promised to turn over evidence they gathered about violations of the law to Younger if he would promptly prosecute those employers who refused to post notices. If Younger could not prosecute, then the Panthers promised to act as "private attorneys general" and file suit themselves.

The suit asks for an order requiring the employers to obey the law in the future and damages of $1,000 from each employer for each violation of the "pay while voting" law.

"Businessmen understand money damages better than any other deter rent," noted Hiestand. "Everyone recognizes that the maximum criminal penalty for not posting the required notices -- a 5 year state prison term -- is unfair and unrealistic. Instead, this is the kind of law that citizens should enforce and collect the $1,000 penalty for their efforts."

The Panthers are also represented in this suit by Jo Ann Chandler, another attorney with Public Advocates, Inc., a non-profit public interest law firm.

(Editors Note: Those companies being sued by the Black Panther Party include: GRANNY GOOSE FOODS, INC.; THARCO CONTAINERS, OAKLAND; STANDARD SPECIALTY CO.; and NOR-CAL METAL FABRICATORS, all California corporations; and FRUEHAUF, DIVISION of FRUEHAUF CORP. and SUNSHINE BISCUITS, INC., foreign corporations doing business in California).

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THE TUSKEGEE STUDY HAS NOT ENDED!

It was a small ceremony of appreciation sometime in the middle of 1958. Each of the Black men were given $25 in new, crisp, one dollar bills and a certificate. The certificate read: "U.S. Public Health Service. This certificate is awarded to (the individual) in appreciation of 25 years of active participation in the Tuskegee medical research study". It was signed by Leroy E. Burney, then U.S. Surgeon General. Following the ceremony, the small group of Black men remember the warm thanks and the broad, grinning smiles of the white Public Health Service officials. This and other grisly details are memories of the now infamous Tuskegee Study -- the `study' undertaken by the U.S. government on the effects of untreated syphilis on Black people's lives.

The `experiment' was begun in 1932, in Tuskegee, Alabama. The justification was a `scientific' attempt to determine the pathology, or the effects of syphilis disease on the human body. The government wanted to confirm the results from previous experiments; that syphilis, of untreated, would attack the central nervous system of the body; that it would advance up the spine attack the limbs and make them useless; destroy and deform bones and teeth; attack the heart, eyes, ears and even the brain and cause premature heart attacks, blindness, deafness and insanity. The government wanted to confirm results that were, even in 1932, common knowledge. They chose as `subjects' 431 Black men who had contracted syphilis, who would go untreated. Another 201 Black men who did not have syphilis would be the comparison group, what the researchers called `controls'

For the U.S. government, for the U.S. Public Health Service, the Tuskegee Study was to be considered the modern `scientific' approach, a `study' of a particular medical problem through the use of human guinea pigs. True to the history of medical and health practices in this country, the Tuskegee Study did not focus upon a cure (syphilis at that time was still listed as `uncurable' although certain drugs were known and use to retard its growth and effects) nor the prevention of syphilis. Instead, in what was and still remains one of the most callous and inhumane displays of medical science, of research with the use of living, human `subjects', the government chose only to confirm the data and results from the previous Oslo (Norway) Study. Even after penicillin became the world-wide cure in 1946, treatment was withheld. As a report from the early 1950's stated, "The benefits of non-treatment… outweighed the benefits conferred by such treatment." With the conscious withholding of any type of treatment the results of the experiment are not surprising: Of the original 431 Black men who had syphilis, 107 died outright from the disease while over 250 died from the syphilis-related diseases. There are 74 living survivors. The Tuskegee Study amounted to a massacre, a small study for bacteriological genocide.

"Because of the low educational status of the majority of the patients, it was impossible to appeal to them from a purely scientific approach." So read the first report of the Tuskegee Study, dated in 1936. Besides the blatent indication that the doctors and the health officials had little respect for the intelligence or the dignity of Black people, of this quote only hints at the cunning and devious schemes the government went through to `recruit their patients.'

What actually happened has to be understood in view of the times in which the Tuskegee Study originated. In 1932, America was still locked in the middle of the Great Depression, one of the inevitable spirals of a capitalist economy which concentrates on production rather than consumption. Of course, Black people, particularly in the South, were hit the hardest; thousands of Black sharecroppers lost everything they had. The few small farms owned by Black families turned to dust. With these conditions of great human suffering and misery, of total poverty and starvation came the public health officials, sent from Washington, D.C. The "Recruits" were offered free hot lunches, free medical care (for diseases other than syphilis), free transportation services to and from hospitals, and free burial services with $100 for the families -- the money was to

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be received after the autopsy.

Over 1,700 Black men, aged 25-70 years old, came for the first blood tests. 1,700 hungry and sometimes homeless Black men, came from across the South. They came in hopes of food and money to help their families survive. From our oppression, from the midst of conditions already tragic and grim, the Tuskegee Study was born. Out of the 1,700 men, the final group of subjects was chosen. Grinning public health authorities, anxious to begin their `experiment' told the men that they had "bad blood". According to Dr. John Haller, a public health doctor who helped initiate the study, "There was nothing in the experiment that was unethical or unscientific."

The cruelty, the lies, the trickery and the deception involved in the Tuskegee Study stand out clearly, in the particular case of Mrs. Eunice Rivers Laurie. Mrs. Laurie, known in Macon County as Nurse Rivers, refused a job, in 1932, as a supervisor in a New York hospital, in order to participate in the Tuskegee Study. She remained in Tuskegee out of deep love and affection for her people, because she believed that there she could do her "small part to contribute to better health." In cruel irony, the racist uncaring officials gave Mrs. Laurie the title, "scientific assistant". In fact, out of the love and devotion she displayed, the entire `study' became known among the Black men involved, as "Miss Rivers' Lounge". For years, the public health officials lied to Mrs. Laurie, perverted her life goals to serve her people for their own devilish ends. With a deep sense of tragedy, Mrs. Laurie later said, "The unfortunate thing about this is that I am the only person who was with the patients constantly. Every two years, they, (The U.S. Public Health Service) sent a different group of men down here to work. So I didn't know what was going on."

On October 27, 1972, 40 years after it had first begun, the government claims that the Tuskegee Study is `officially' ended. This is only another lie, another devious joke. How can it have ended, when none of the immediate families of these men were ever treated? How can it have ended, while the conditions and attitudes which caused it to be initiated still remain? The entire Black and oppressed communities are but the surviving families of the Tuskegee Study, we have inherited their blood; we are their blood. Many of us still suffer from syphilis, we continue to suffer from Sickle Cell Anemia, another long kept government secret. The `disease' of oppression spreads unchecked throughout our communities: Without preventative medicine, without free community health care services, the `Cheshire cat' smiles will remain, the `experiment' continues. We, the survivors of Tuskegee call for mass education and research programs, to give Black and all oppressed people access to the most advanced medical and scientific information, so we can begin to determine our destinies and our lives.

ALL POWER TO THE PEOPLE

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“WE'RE TALKING ABOUT WINNING IN OAKLAND”

SISTER ELAINE BROWN SPEAKS AT GROVE STREET COLLEGE

On Thursday, October 26th, 1972, Sister Elaine Brown of the Black Panther party gave an informal speech at Grove Street College, in Oakland, California. The subject of her talk with the students of Grove St. concerned the upcoming April, 1973 elections in which Bobby Seale of the Black Panther Party is campaigning for the Mayor's seat and Elaine herself is campaigning for a seat on the Oakland City Council.

Sister Elaine explains the necessity of the Black Panther Party involving itself in the electoral process of Oakland as a step in establishing a revolutionary base of operations. The following is the excerpted text of her Grove Street College speech:

I'd first like to thank everyone for inviting us here today so that we could talk about the campaign. The first thing we have to talk about is why I am running in particular and why the Black Panther Party is supporting electoral politics by engaging in a political campaign of this type. I am sure most of you at Grove Street are familiar with the work of the Black Panther Party enough to say three years ago we would never have seen this kind of thing. Well, of course, as you can remember, we did run some people for political office several years ago as a kind of an exercise. This time we're talking about winning the election in Oakland. We're talking about making Bobby Seale the mayor of Oakland, and Elaine Brown councilperson on the city council of Oakland.

Why are we running in the first place? We have the fundamental belief that the people have no power -- the masses of people -- and we're talking in general in all of this country and specifically about Oakland. The masses of people have, really, no ability to implement the power that they really have. There is power among us; we just aren't implementing it. We happen to be in the majority; that is to say, those of us who are oppressed are in the majority. What do we do to begin the real struggle in this country? We say we're already engaged in a revolutionary struggle, because revolution is a process, and this (campaign) is part of that process. The building of a force that can, in fact, eventually seize

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power for all of the people.

So, I'm running for the city council office. And I think that it's going to be a good thing if we win the election, and as I said before, we intend to win. Approximately 54% of the city of Oakland is Black, Most of the Black people in Oakland are poor people. The non-white population is very small beyond that. There is a large white conservative population in Oakland that does vote. So far we've registered approximately 25,000 people, most of them have been Black people. We think that we can get most of the Black people that are able to vote to the polls in April to vote for Bobby Seale and Elaine Brown.

What would be the significance of the election? What would be the significance of winning at this point? The significance will be that we will have been put into a position to really start talking about implementing the needs and desires of the people. We will be able to formulate and build what we call a base of operation. If you've been reading the Black Panther Party paper, I'm sure that you've noticed that it's had a supplement each week called Oakland- A Base of Operation!, and that's exactly what we can build. And when I say `we', I'm not talking about the Black Panther Party; I'm talking about we, the people, The people of Oakland, the poor people here, in this area, can begin to actually build a base of operation to do what? To begin to start talking about seizing power in Oakland, in all of California, New York, through Texas, and Oklahoma, and on through the Midwest and through the East Coast, in fact, throughout the United States.

We say we begin right here in Oakland. That's fine with us. Oakland is a military-industrial city. It's whole operation is based on war. Four out of five of Oakland's federal dollars go into the Vietnamese war, and only one dollar goes back allegedly to take care of the people's needs. We have all kinds of problems that just exist in the city of Oakland. What we're talking about is whether we can begin to build this base in Oakland. One of the ways to begin is to get into those positions that, at this time, have something to say about the government. We believe that by running for these offices and by winning, we can begin to then call forth a lot of issues and change the face of the city of Oakland, which is one of their chief cities. In a small city like Oakland -- you might ask yourself, `why is the budget of the Port of Oakland equal to the budget of the city of Oakland'? I don't even understand why a city like Oakland has a port, when San Francisco is not too far away. Why does Oakland have an international airport? No one flies from Oakland to Paris. There are all kind of things that go on in this city that we don't know anything about. We're going to find out something and expose every single one of these things so that the people of Oakland know where our money is going, where our federal dollars are going, our tax dollars, our BART (Bay Area Rapid Transit) dollars. We sometimes don't understand that these are the issues. We get side-tracked into so many different things; they go on with their machinery, and they say, `Alright, let those people go wild, but we're still in control. We still run the government, we still run the country.' For example, four years ago, everyone who was Black was going around beating on their chest talking about Black Power, everything that was `Black was Beautiful'. United Airlines has one of the most `Black and Beautiful' programs there is. They call it "Something Special" and they have a Black person who can speak to you and handle your needs on United Airlines. You've seen ads in the papers, everything is Black. They have said, 'you want to be Black. They have said, `you want to be Black, it's fine with us. As long as we are in control, you can be Black. If you want to be hip, you want to wear your hair long, we don't care about your hair being long, as long as you can support the economic principle, as long as you're still on the supporting side. We don't care what you do. We don't care if your hair is long, if you beat on your chest, change your name, don't wear shoes, refuse to go to our schools. We don't care what you do because we're still in control.' So we've got to care what we do, and we've got to talk about how do we seize their machines, because believe me, they are still in control; we haven't changed anything. Nixon is, in fact, going to win. They don't plan on giving up anything. We say that Oakland is a good enough base of operation. Oakland is fine; we've got half the population that's Black, most of the people here don't have anything, and so on. So we're talking about implementing people's power. We're talking about actually implementing a housing program where everyone can

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actually live decently, without having to apply to Grubb and Ellis (a huge real estate company) for their living quarters. We're talking about everyone having a decent meal every day, three times a day if they want -- and it can be done, not ten years from now, but right now.

Envision it. Envision implementing people's power in just one city. For those of you who have studied revolution and who understand something about the way power has changed from one hand to another in other countries; those of you who have studied the Cuban Revolution, or the Chinese Revolution, or the Korean Revolution, or the revolutionary struggles that are taking place in Africa, you might say, `Well, now, what does this have to do with guerrilla warfare? And is it true that the Black Panther Party is saying that we don't have to fight'? Well, what is true is that we would like to have as little bloodshed as possible -- we're not the ones who are interested in dying, we've been dying for 400 years. We're talking about living, we're talking about enjoying the fruits of our work. If we die, then, as Claude McKay said, `let it not be like hogs hunted and penned in an inglorious spot.' But let us talk about winning; let us not just talk about being foolish, romantic or dramatic.

Imagine us having the control of this city. Imagine a brother getting arrested in this city, with Bobby Seale as mayor. Imagine all those things. There are so many things you can do, we can begin to do. Imagine if they start pulling the federal money out of the city of Oakland, what the masses of people are going to be saying about that. What we can do with that piece of information, if they all of a sudden don't want to send in their little federal money because Oakland will be `bad territory'.

We've got to start talking about liberating territory such as Oakland. You see, when you think in classical terms you start talking about for example, Mozambique -- they've liberated three provinces. We're talking about liberating the territory of Oakland then, let's put it that way. Because that's what we're really talking about doing: liberating the territory of Oakland and defending it if necessary. Are we ready to defend at this moment? I don't think we are. The Oakland Police Department has got all the guns.

There's a practical problem, when you talk about liberating territory, or establishing a provisional revolutionary government. Think about those issues when you start talking about implementing a revolutionary process in the United States of America, with its super - technological weapons, where they do not have to commit a troop to take out the whole city, because they have `smart' bombs, helicopters, and all kinds of things so that it doesn't even require the entrance of one troop. Think about that. We have to start talking about how to win, not how to get killed. We can begin by talking about voting in the city of Oakland, the Oakland elections, in April 1973, for Bobby Seale, for Elaine Brown.

TO BE CONTINUED
NEXT WEEK

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CHICAGO ATTACKS DE MAU MAU

RACIST SENSATIONALISM CONVICTS NINE BROTHERS WITHOUT A TRIAL

Without a doubt, America's vile history of economic exploitation and racial hatred has long been a cause of great physical and mental suffering for Black people and other people of color. It has woven a grotesque tapestry of criminal injustices against humanity for the civilized world to view and condemn: the genocide of the American Indian, Black slavery, the terror of lynchings, attacks by carnivorous dogs and their counterparts -- the Ku Klux Klan and white vigilantes. All condoned, either through active participation or immoral silence, by America's white majority.

That this sickness that is so much the necessity to the mental processes of the average white American, would, of course, in the final analysis, reap tragic consequences for the white population of this country is becoming more of a reality. There is much truth in the old adage, `you reap what you sow'. How can a people allow themselves to be filled with irrational hatred and remain unaffected by that hatred?

The city of Chicago, in the state of Illinois, is a hotbed of racial antagonism, which is reinforced by the oppressive city power structure. It is the city where fascist Mayor Richard Daley labeled Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King a `troublemaker' and gave the infamous orders to police, during a summer uprising of oppressed people, to "shoot to kill all adult looters and shoot to cripple or maim juvenile looters." It is the city where the pre-planned assassination of Brothers Fred Hampton and Mark Clark -- under the direction of States Attorney Edward V. Hanrahan -- took place; and it is the locality where more Black people are murdered by the police than in any other city in the whole of the United States.

There has been no outcry of righteous indignation from the larger white community of Chicago over such racist circumstances; such things did not affect them; and after all, didn't `law and order' serve to keep `those people' in their place? But, during this year, the white communities in the suburbs adjacent to Chicago have experienced the terror that we have known all the days of our lives.

From the beginning of 1972 up to September, there has been an unaccountable number of mass and individual murders of white people in the suburbs. (A few of which have been a family of four murdered on August 4th in Barrington Hillis, Illinois; and a family of three found murdered on September 3rd in Monee, Illionis. Both of these murders took place in the white victims' homes). These were tragic crimes, executed by ill people, but which reflect the greater sickness of a corrupt society.

The terror-filled white communities demanded immediate action from all of Illinois' police agencies; and the police responded in typical fashion. The Black community of Chicago became the target of the search. If whites were being murdered in such a manner -- the police reasoned -- then certainly Black people must be responsible. (Conveniently forgotten were such white mass murderers as Richard Speck, who slaughtered 8 Chicago nurses and James Whitmore, who climbed atop a tower at the University of Texas and killed a number of people strolling across the campus, with a carbine).

As was expected, on October 16, 1972, the reactionary Chicago newspapers came out with sensationalized, front page banner headlines saying that the "killer" had been apprehended. Of course, the "killers" were Black men. The white press, in denouncing the Black men, used such terms as: "Black racist killers", "roving animals" and Black terrorist gang". The police said that "these were aimless revolutionaries who `hit' usually after they got high on pot". A racist flow of other unfounded rumors were circulated throughout Chicago, such as the "mass killer gang" had been plotting to kill Chicago police before their arrest and were also out to kill "Uncle Tom" Black people. Perhaps the most ridiculous rumor of all was that the "killers" were being funded by foreign sources.

In actuality, the 6 brothers initially arrested were members of De Mau Mau, an organization which originated in Vietnam, in the Marine Corps. It was formed by Black servicemen to pool together their collective strength as a means of combating the racist practices of the U.S. military. De Mau Mau soon grew to include oppressed Puerto Rican and Indian servicemen. When discharged from the military, many De Mau Mau maintained the organization on the streets, while entering back into the civilian way of life. It was not an underground organization bent on terrorism.

The six Black members of De Mau Mau who were arrested were all residents of Chicago's southside, and had all been attending Malcolm X and Kennedy-King Colleges. They were: Reuben Taylor, 22; Donald Taylor, 21; Michael Clark, 21; Nathaniel Burse, 23; Howard Moran, 23; and Robert Wilson, 18. The racist Chicago news media swung its propaganda machinery into full gear. It was implied that the De Mau Mau group was responsible for every recent unsolved murder of

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whites in Illinois. There was much digging into the brothers' military background. The press stated that most of the brothers had received dishonorable discharges. A full "detailed" disclosure of "evidence" against the brothers was displayed in the white newspapers even before indictments were returned or even cnsidered by a grand jury. They were held in custody for 48 hours and then taken to a 2:00 a.m. bond hearing -- the public and press were forbidden access to this hearing and bond for the six brothers was, of course, denied.

States Attorney, Edward Hanrahan, saw the opportunity to capitalize on the arrests of the brothers. He commended the "good work" of the police department, and especially his staff. It was very clear to the Black community that Hanrahan was going to use the De Mau Mau as a means to beef-up his chances for re-election to the office of States Attorney; chances that were never slim anyway. This was evident when Hanrahan swept the primary election for that office by receiving a majority of the white racist vote.

Three more members of the De Mau Mau turned themselves into custody when they learned that the police were saying that they were implicated in the murders of white people. Because of the climate Hanrahan and the racist press had created in Chicago, the three brothers felt it was a matter of turning themselves in or being shot down in the streets. They were: Garland Jackson, 21; Darrell Peatry, 20; and William Jackson.

The official railroad of the De Mau Mau brothers has started -- even before the farce of a trial. It is almost a certainty that they will not receive a jury of their peers; a fair trial in the racist atmosphere of Chicago. There has been no clear cut, damaging evidence against them, yet they have already been convicted by the courts, the press, Hanrahan and a blood thirsty white community. The only thing left to do to make the circus complete is to go through the unwanted necessity of a trial.

It need not be stressed that the Black community is humane. We are against the indiscriminate and senseless killing of any people, for we have been victims of such acts for far too long. We are equally against the `legal' railroading of our oppressed brothers and sisters -- to jail or to the grave. We do not know who killed the white families and individuals, but we do know that racism has caused white America to put the knife to its own throat -- the chickens come home to roost.

ALL POWER TO THE PEOPLE

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OAKLAND -- A BASE OF OPERATION!: CLASSROOM CRISIS: WE NEED TEACHERS, NOT EXECUTIVES

PART XVI

The Oakland Unified School District is in the midst of its annual financial crisis. The crisis in Oakland and other school districts throughout the country are directly related to the oppressive system which we live under. There are, however, measures which could be taken to improve the operation of the schools and the quality of education, although school officials would have us believe otherwise.

Oakland residents pay high taxes for the purpose of education, yet Oakland schools, especially those in the Black and poor communities, are among the worst in the country. In part XVI of our continuing series, Oakland -- A Base of Operation!, we examine some of the reasons for the Oakland school district's constant state of crisis: wasteful expenditures, incompetent administrators and the racist, insensitive attitudes of some members of the Board of Education. The fact that quality education is expensive is well understood. A school system must have money to prepare our children for life in this advanced, technological society, to provide them with the skills necessary to insure their survival. In Oakland (or any American city) however, the emphasis is not on preparing children for life, but on administrating the monstrous beauracracy that the system has become.

We hope the information in this article will enlighten you about the deplorable conditions our schools are in and what we must do to change them into institutions that provide relevant education. Our schools have a crucial role to play in developing Oakland as a base from which we will build a framework for the future liberation of all Black and oppressed people.

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The Oakland School Board and Superintendent Marcus Foster's administration have once again found themselves short of funds. Their response to this shortage is the usual one; reduce educational services to the children, most of whom are Black and poor. Last summer the School Board, realizing that it was $1 million short in funds, abolished some teaching positions and increased class sizes. This latest fund shortage was supposedly caused by an error made by the highly paid administrative staff. Although the School Board spent $700,000 last year for computer services, the computer "experts" made a mistake. They projected a reduction in school enrollment of 600 students. Actually the system lost 2,400 students this year. The decreased school enrollment means a loss in state financial aid, so the Oakland School Board now is shocked to find that it is nearly $1 million short of funds.

Under the pretense of trying to save some of the lost money, the school administration is eliminating some teachers, reassigning other teachers and disrupting classes two months after school has begun. These disruptions can only have a detrimental effect on our children.

At an October 31, 1972, board meeting, which was attended by over 400 people, members of the community told the school board and the administration to do their economizing somewhere else other than the classroom.

To justify their actions, school officials use long-winded terms and quote questionable statistics which further confuse the issue.

School superintentent Marcus Foster claims he has solved the system's problem of too many administrators. In reality he has only changed the job classifications of 43 excess administrators from administration to pupil personnel and classified. They are still paid high salaries for doing nothing. On November 17, 1972, the administration plans to transfer 74 teachers. When these transfers are made, 37 staff positions will in effect cease to exist. This means that a large number of classes will be consolidated, increasing the sizes and making any individual instruction virtually impossible. Students will be moved from room to room thus disrupting the educational program if any has begun. The education which Black and poor children receive now is irrelevant, and if tampered with any further would amount to no education at all. Marcus Foster states that "despite dwindling resources we are becoming ingenious in using the resources at hand." In looking at the unsafe, dilapidated school buildings in the Black community one wonders where and how these resources are being used. One teacher who complained to the superintendent's office about the lack of textbooks and necessary teaching supplies was told by an assistant superintendent to teach without textbooks; we can do without such "ingenious" suggestions.

A close look at the school administration provides us with some insight as to where the "dwindling resources" are going. Some significant facts are: (1) 75 administrators, most of whom are white, have salaries of more than $20,000 per year. (2) Over the past four years, while the size of the teaching staff has decreased, the size of the administrative staff has increased by almost 10 percent. This means that what money is available is being channeled into the administration instead of the classroom. (3) Last year there were more than 30 administrators and clerks for every 100 teachers.

Each year the Oakland Unified School District receives money from the federal government under Title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act. This $4.2 million grant is supposed to improve the education of Black and poor children in Oakland. The method which is used to divert this money into the pockets of overpaid officials illustrates absolute contempt for Black and poor people's intelligence. The Oakland School system hires, not only a Title I director and staff as required by law, but also education writers with $16,500 salaries, assistant directors with $19,000 salaries, and an assortment of coordinators, supervisors and other needless bureaucrats complete with inflated salaries. Nearly half of the money allocated to Oakland schools under Title I never reaches the classroom. The school administration justifies its misuse of Title I money by saying that parents and teachers prepare the Title I budget. The truth is that the administration decides how Title I money will be used before parents or teachers are even consulted. The results of this gross mismanagement are obvious. It is our children who suffer the most from arrogant school officials whose only concern is administration. There are over 60,000 students in the Oakland school system, 60 percent of whom are Black and non-white. The racism exhibited by some school board members is directly related to the low quality of education offered in Oakland schools.

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Parents and members of the community in general must demand an active role in the decision-making and overall operation of the school system. At recent Board of Education meetings hundreds of Black and poor people were in attendance to demonstrate their anger about the proposed teacher cuts and reassignments.

The Oakland branch of the American Federation of Teachers Union has discussed the possibility of a strike if the teacher-cuts are implemented. Due to the pressure applied by the community and the teachers, Superintendent Marcus Foster has changed his position. He now says that "the district is searching for some other way, without making drastic cuts and shifts. The matter has not been closed." He is frightened by the ability of the community to organize ourselves in our own interests. He is frightened by the idea of community control of schools.

The future of our children is at stake. The Oakland School system will improve when the community can wrest control of the system from the bureaucrats who presently administrate it. We must continue to demand that the money available to the schools be spent for classroom instruction and necessary supplies rather than the high salaries of worthless administrators. The education of our youth is crucial to the continued survival of Black and poor people in this country. Our youth are our future. It is our responsibility to transform the schools into institutions that will provide our children with an education that is relevant to the tasks they will face trying to survive - an everyday existence in America.

ALL POWER TO THE PEOPLE

-- [D] --

A PROGRAM FOR SURVIVAL

Free Breakfast Program

Provides children a free, hot breakfast every school morning.

People's Free Food Program

Provides free food to Black and other oppressed people.

Liberation Schools

Provides free educational facilities and materials to Black and other oppressed children to promote a correct view of their role in the society.

Intercommunal Youth Institute

Provides Black and other oppressed children with a scientific method of thinking and analyzing things, basic skills for living in the society and a concrete alternative to established learning institutions.

Legal Aid Educational Program

Provides full legal assistance to those involved in legal problems, as well as legal aid classes.

Free Bussing to Prisons Program

Provides free transportation to prisons for families and friends of incarcerated men and women.

Free Commissary for Prisoners Program

Provides imprisoned men and women with the funds to purchase necessary commissary items inside the prison.

David Hilliard People's Free Shoe Program

Provides free shoes to the people made at the David Hilliard Free Shoe factory and elsewhere.

People's Free Clothing Program

Provides new, stylish and quality clothing free to the people.

People's Free Medical Research Health Clinics

Provides free medical treatment and preventative medical care for the people.

People's Sickle Cell Anemia Research Foundation

Instituted to test and establish a cure for Sickle Cell Anemia, to create better educational programs around Sickle Cell Anemia and maintain an advisory committee of doctors already researching Sickle Cell Anemia.

Intercommunal News Service

Provides news and information about the Black and other oppressed communities throughout the U.S. and the world.

Free Pest Control Program

Free household extermination of rats, roaches, ants and other disease carrying pests and rodents.

People's Free Ambulance Service

(Being Implemented)

Provides free, 24-hour speedy transportation to people in need of emergency medical care.

People's Free Dental Program

(Being Implemented)

Provides free dental check-ups and treatment for the people, as well as an educational program for dental hygiene and preventative dental care.

People's Free Optometry Program

(Being Implemented)

Provides free eye examinations, treatment and eye correctional equipment (glasses, etc.) for the people.

People's Free Plumbing and Maintenance Program

(Being Implemented)

Provides free plumbing and repair services to improve people's housing conditions.

Community Cooperative Housing Program

(Being Implemented)

Provides decent housing, cooperatively owned and managed by the resident families.

People's Free Furniture

(Being Implemented)

Provides free, decent furniture to improve our living standards.

People's Free Community Employment Program

(Being Implemented)

Provides free job-finding services to poor and oppressed people, who cannot find work.

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PEOPLE'S PETITION

FOR IMMEDIATE PAROLE OF BROTHER DAVID
HILLIARD FROM THE CALIFORNIA PRISON
SYSTEM OR AN APPEAL BAIL BOND WITH
A RETRIAL JURY OF HIS PEER-GROUP.

We the people, residents of the world community, in the spirit of revolutionary intercommunalism, do hereby redress our grievance and petition the courts of America and the California State Government and Parole Board: That David Hilliard be released from his prison incarceration in the California Penal System to the people of our communities on parole or an appeal bail bond.

Brother David Hilliard, political prisoner and Chief of Staff of the Black Panther Party, was in fact wrongfully convicted on false charges by a predominately white racist jury, as all members of the Oakland Black community were systematically eliminated from the jury selection process in his trial.

In light of these facts, we the undersigned, therefore petition that David Hilliard be granted his human and constitutional rights, that is, parole from prison or an appeal bail bond by the American courts pending appeal of his case before higher courts, and that his retrial jury be of his peers, a true representation of a cross section of the community.

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FREEDOM NEWS INTERVIEWS DAVID HILLIARD

PART I

In last week's issue of the Black Panther Intercommunal News Service (vol. IX #3) it was stated that Brother David Hilliard was to go before the California Adult Authority, on November 1, 1972, for parole hearing.

Davids parole hearing did not take place on this date, but was instead rescheduled for sometime in the first two weeks of December, 1972. The following is an interview that will afford us more insight into the life of David Hilliard -- the man and the revolutionary:

Q: As Chief of Staff of the Black Panther Party behind bars, do you ex-exert any leadership, or give any direction to the activities of any of the Black Panther Party's programs at this time?

DAVID: No, for the most part my time has been geared to my college studies and making preparations to return back to the community so I can make a more significant contribution. At this time it would be a very bad strategy for me to be active because I am under constant surveillance and it would not be in the best interests of organizations functioning within the prison.

Q: Besides your own personal survival, what has been your area of concern while in prison? Have you been able to define or help with any of the inmates' problems?

DAVID: My experiences have shown me that the greater population of inmates here, who happen to be Black, are here because of plea bargaining which shortcuts the judicial process. My method of assisting them has been to try to set up legal machinery to get them back into court on appeals.

Q: Regarding the above questions, what role do you expect to have when you get out? Do you expect to continue your education as well?

DAVID: In order to understand the forces in operation you have to understand the dialectic of society. One can only acquire that through education and the Black Panther Party most definitely supports higher education. It is my intention to enroll in one of the community colleges and continue to serve the people with a clearer perspective.

Q: The Black Panther Party has had as one of its major points that all Black and poor oppressed inmates are political prisoners. In light of your experience, do you still believe this to be true? What practical remedies do you believe are possible to gain freedom for these individuals?

DAVID: People are here as a result of a criminal society. They are forced to the unemployment lines because of technology. The welfare system is not able to provide for their basic necessities, so it is only natural that they would use whatever means they are exposed to for survival strategies. So yes, it is the system itself that deprives them of a right to live. They are political prisoners because of economic deprivations forced on them by fascist ruling circles. To help them get their freedom we have to demand that the adult authority is reconstructed with people that have a love of freedom in the interest of mankind.

PART II TO BE CONTINUED NEXT WEEK

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IMPRISONED FOR SERVING THE PEOPLE

THE WILMINGTON 9 RAILROADED TO PRISON

North Carolina's court system is now serving as the state's chief tool for the repression of those Black men and women who actively struggle to eliminate the oppressive conditions that exist in the Black Community. The most recent of a long train of legal railroadings of Black activists was the conviction, on October 8, 1972, of Reverend Ben Chavis and eight other brothers. The false charges against them were arson and assault on emergency personnel during a period of attacks upon the Black community of Wilmington, N.C. by police, white viligantes, and National Guardsmen in February of 1971.

Brother Chavis, who is 24 years old, recieved a 34 year prison sentence. Reginald Epps, Willie Wright, Jr., Connie Tydall, Willie Verine, James McCoy, Wayne Moore, Marvin Patrick, and Jerry Jacobs received sentences ranging from 22 to 23 years in prison. Reverend Chavis and the other eight brothers (together known as the Wilmington 9) were charged with burning a store during racial disturbances, and then shooting at the police and firemen who came to the scene. The sentencing of the Wilmington 9 was the outcome of the concentrated effort of the state of North Carolina to convict these Black political activists because of their efforts to educate and serve the Black community of Wilmington.

The nine brothers, particularly Rev. Chavis, were arrested earlier this year, not because of any involvement in the 1971 incident, but because of the state's aim to repress the Black leadership in Wilmington, where the Black community is under constant attack by the allied forces of white racist vigilantes and the police.

The Wilmington trial began in June, 1972, but it ended when James Stroud, of the state prosecutor's office, found that the jury selected was composed of ten Black people and two whites. He suddenly claimed to be "ill", and the racist judge granted a mistrial. The bond for the defendants was then lowered (Rev. Chavis' bond had been $50,000) and they were released on bail.

The second trial began on September 11, 1972. This trial, like the first, was located in Burgaw, a small town about twenty miles from Wilmington which had been chosen by the judge as the trial site after defense attorneys had asked for a change of venue, due to the tremendous adverse publicity of the case in Wilmington. Burgaw residents however, do read the Wilmington newspapers, listen to and watch the Wilmington radio and television stations, and relate to Wilmington as the closest big city. In fact, the choice of Burgaw was carefully planned by the state, for its white population has all of Wilmington's prejudices about the Wilmington 9 case; all of the irrationalities and racial bias against Black people. During the jury selection, in this second trial, the state made certain that it got a predominately racist jury.

Attorneys Harmon, James Ferguson, Frank Ballance, and James Becton, four progressive Black lawyers from various parts of the state, assembled in an effort to save these Black men from the unjust court system that has filled North Carolina's prisons with Black people. So important was it to the state that these dedicated brothers were stopped from serving the Wilmington Black community, that the Governor appointed Judge Robert Martin to conduct the trial. This white judge, whose favorite phrase throughout the Wilmington 9 trial was "objection overruled", is known throughout the Black community as a racist, and he moves all over North Carolina to preside over controversial cases when the State wants to assure a conviction. To insure that State Prosecutor James Stroud be carefully coached and able to work well with the judge, Dale Johnson, a special prosecutor, hand picked by the State Attorney General, was sent to Burgaw.

The state's entire case rested on the testimony of two "witnesses" who claim to have been with Rev. Ben Chavis and the eight other brothers during the February, 1971 disturbances. One witness, Jerome Mitchell, is presently serving a sentence for murder. The other, Allen Hall, who is the major witness, made the absurd claim that he was part of a "group" which he said included Rev. Chavis and the other brothers, and that he helped commit the "crimes". Hall has been committed to mental institutions several times, and it was admitted in court that he had been committed to a mental institution recently for observation.

Under stiff questioning by (Defense) Attorney Ferguson, it was soon evident that Hall's testimony was full of contradictions. Becoming hysterical when

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he was caught in his false story, Allen Hall actually jumped off the witness stand and attacked the lawyer, and had to be dragged from the courtroom. Indicative of the insanity of the proceedings, Judge Martin warned Ferguson that if he provoked a witness like that again, he would be cited for contempt of court.

Mitchell, the state's other witness, made it evident that he had been promised a sentence reduction for his false testimony. The sentence he was already serving of "not more than thirty years" under North Carolina's "Youthful Offenders" statutes, can be made to mean that a prisoner can serve only one day, according to the discretion of the state. Mitchell said exactly what he was told to say in order to win favor. On September 30th, the Judge interrupted the trial so that Special Prosecutor Johnson could "make a long distance call." An hour and a half later, Johnson's boss, State's Attorney General Robert Morgan, was seen by a newspaper reporter in a restaurant having lunch with the judge. Martin was actually caught in the act of receiving his instructions as to how best to handle the trial.

Rev. Chavis' bond is $50,000, and the others are $40,000 each. The Wilmington 9 are now appealing their convictions. Chavis also faces several other charges in North Carolina and Virginia, all totalling over 100 years in possible prison sentences. In August, he was convicted and sentenced to 12 months in prison in Portsmouth, Virginia, on a fabricated charge of "disturbing exercises" at a high school there, which he is now appealing. Police had said that the students were "distracted" by a boycott Rev. Chavis didn't even lead. He is also under federal charges of "possession of illegal weapons." in Wilmington, he still faces trumped-up charges of "accessory after the fact of murder", where it is alleged that he knew about a murder and didn't report it. On August 31st, 1972, the racist authorities apparently did not want to wait for Brother Chavis to be legally lynched; he was almost killed when a firebomb planted in his car exploded.

The State of North Carolina has again succeeded in railroading a group of political Black activists to prison. The line of recent legal railroadings began last February with the conviction of the High Point 3, members of the Black Panther Party who were sentenced to 7 - 10 years in prison on charges stemming from a police attack on a Community Center in High Point, North Carolina. This past summer, three well known political organizers in the state -- called the Charlotte 3 -- were convicted on the absurd charge of "burning a horse stable", and received sentences ranging from 20 to 35 years. North Carolina officials now plan to end the year by trying to convict the Winston-Salem 3:Larry Little, Julius Cornell, and Grady Fuller, all members of the Black Panther Party. They're being tried on the phoney charges of stealing a meat truck. The trial is expected to begin on December 4. The state's attempt to turn all our Black warriors into political prisoners must end. We must begin to exert the political pressure necessary to stop state repression against those who serve the interests of the Black community. Dedicated political organizers like Rev. Chavis and the entire Wilmington 9 are needed in the Black community. Free the Wilmington 9.

ALL POWER TO THE PEOPLE

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CANCER IN OUR MEAT

In this country there is a great deal of information that directly affects our health, our survival, that is kept "top secret" or "confidential". Only until recently have we, Black people, learned of Sickle Cell Anemia, a blood disorder which primarily affects Black people. The government long ago learned of the disease (it was discovered in 1910), but not until recently did they even begin to `act as if' they were concerned about researching it or achieving a cure. We have also just recently learned of the notorious Tuskegee Study that allowed Black people to endure the severity of untreated syphilis for a forty year period. There are countless other examples: the Pentagon Papers; the Army surveillence of civilian political activists, even the murders of Kennedy and Dr. Martin Luther King. These government secrets are being constantly exposed and reveal the U.S. government in all its `glory'. Stripped of their lies, what lies behind the `credability gap' exposes man in his rawest form -- the destruction of man and earth for the profit and power of a few. Behind the facade of `democracy', the American Empire rolls on.

One of Washington's latest "confidential" matters to be revealed for the people's examination is the United States Department of Agriculture's so-called study dealing with a particular harmone, DES (diethylstilbestrol), that is currently being used as a feed additive for cattle. However, other laboratory tests have determined that this harmone, DES, leaves chemical residues in the tissues of slaughtered animals which causes cancer in the animals. People in turn eat the meat from these cancer infested animals; that is, we actually are forced to eat cancer cells!

The purpose of using the hormone, whose use is, of course, favored by the rich American National Cattlemen's Association, is to cause the cattle to grow larger in a shorter period of time. The cattle barons can raise a steer in a shorter period of time, cutting costs of raising the animal, bringing it to market bigger and sooner, selling it for more money -- while the prices of meat raise at rates that have even caused middle class white people to complain; prices which poor people can simply not afford.

Currently, the hormone is being used as a feed additive. It can also be absorbed into the system of the animal by placing pellets of the hormone into the ears of animals. This method is considered slower and more expensive.

In the meantime, the Senate has passed a bill, which supposedly orders a complete ban of the use of DES on January 1, 1973; unless the secret government study being done on the hormone proves that implantation (in the ears) can be done safely. Also the Food and Drug Administration has ordered DES banned from livestock feed as of next January 1, but has left open the question of using the hormone in pellets in the animal's ears. All of this is pending the secret test headed by a Dr. E.R. Goode, Jr., of the Agricultural Research Service of the Agricultural Department. Goode has said. "No information will be released until after all tests are completed, probably in January." We cannot tolerate this `band' of arrogance and secrecy pertaining to the food we eat or anything else essential to our survival. Again, as we would expect, the rich Cattlemen's Association favors this secrecy. It is the right of everyone to know what they are eating. (Presently, there are over one dozen countries around the world who refuse to buy meat from America. In all of these countries, DES is completely banned from use in all livestock).

The disregard for human life, not to mention, healthy human life, has constantly been demonstrated by big business and it's obliging government. Racist lettuce growers in Northern and Central California, continue to use pesticide 2,4-D, which has been proven to cause birth defects in test animals and is so dangerous that even the U.S. Army has banned its use in Vietnam. Their motivation, their driving force, is to make more money regardless of who suffers.

We must keep in the upper most part of our minds that for every issue or secret that the people expose, they are many more `stashes', many more `confidential' matters, that big business and the government deny the people knowledge of. This is just another way in which we must realize that we have little control of our lives, another obstacle to be overcome in our drive towards freedom. They would force us to eat food that may be diseased in order to keep the big business of this country growing bigger. When we talk about returning power to the people's hands, controlling our own destinies, this is one of the things we mean -- the power to see to it that chemicals such as DES are not contaminating the food that we must eat in order to stay alive.

We might add that a ban has long ago been placed on the use of DES in human food but it is continued to be used in the food for the animals that we eat. Can you separate the food of animals from human food, when we eat the animals that have been fed chemicals that cause cancer? The twisted logic which now rules this country will exclude no form of oppression and exploitation from this list of horrors. Business interests, and government would conspire together in secret while humanity suffers. Every lie must be exposed, every secret dossier burned. We must not let our oppressor dispatch his treachery from the dark. With people's control of technology, our lives and our survival will be guaranteed and assured.

ALL POWER TO THE PEOPLE

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SUBSCRIBE TO SURVIVE

In order to enable members of the Black community to read our newspaper regularly and support the people's survival programs, in October the Black Panther Party will begin a door-to-door subscription drive for the Black Panther Intercommunal News Service in the Oakland area. Our newspaper will keep you informed of events that happen throughout the Black community and the world.

By subscribing to the Black Panther Intercommunal News Service, you will be helping the Free Food Program, Free Health Clinic, Free Shoe Program, Free Breakfast Program, and other survival programs implemented by the Black Panther Party to serve the Black community.

To subscribe for three (3) months is $2.50; $5.00 for six (6) months; $8.75 for 1 year; and $100.00 for a lifetime subscription.

When a Black Panther Party member comes to your door, he or she will present an identification card and ask you to fill out a subscription blank. If you are not able to pay immediately, payment can be made later.

Every subscriber will receive a free bumper sticker and a campaign poster of Bobby Seale (who is running for Mayor of Oakland and Elaine Brown (who is running for Oakland City Councilwoman).

To be informed and to participate in the survival of our people, buy the Black Panther Intercommunal News Service. Read about your community and the world.

ALL POWER TO THE PEOPLE

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INTERCOMMUNAL NEWS: IS “PEACE AT HAND”?

It was a startled and surprised American public, who, last week, turned on their television sets to find Henry Kissinger announce in his best German accent "peace is at hand". Few could actually believe that the seemingly endless war in Vietnam might be in its final stages. When, however, the Democratic People's Republic of Vietnam released a statement in Hanoi, a statement which detailed the 9 basic points of agreement, the disbelief turned to joy. The statement from Hanoi confirmed the existence of a draft agreement, achieved through a series of secret meetings between Le Doc Tho, the chief negotiator for North Vietnam, and Kissinger. These meetings were held between October 9th and October 22nd in both Paris and Hanoi. The 9 basic points of agreement were:

1) All bombing of North Vietnam would be stopped (as would the criminal mining of North Vietnamese harbors by the U.S. Navy).

2) The signing of a cease-fire agreement by the U.S. and North Vietnam in Paris.

3) The total withdrawal of all U.S. mercenary troops from Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos within 60 days after the agreement is signed.

4) All American and North Vietnamese prisoners of war would be returned simultaneously with the withdrawal of the American troops.

5) South Vietnam would be divided into sections. The Saigon government would control those few territories it now holds and the same would apply for territories now under the administrative control of North Vietnam. (A "Council of National Reconciliation and National Accord" would be established also, composed of members of the Viet Cong, elements from the Saigon administration and neutralists. This important Council would help arrange details of the cease-fire, assure it was carried out and prepare for national elections).

6) An international control commission would supervise the execution of the cease-fire.

7) An international conference on Vietnam would be convened 30 days after the cease-fire.

8) Free and open elections would be held in South Vietnam to guarantee the people of South Vietnam their right to self-determination after years of U.S. imposed dictatorship.

9) The United States would provide North Vietnam with economic aid to help rebuild their country.

Before the week had ended, however, the true and wicked intentions of the corrupt Nixon Administration came to the forefront. First, their puppet in Saigon, President Thieu, spoke out, mumbling nonsense that "Peace will come when I sign the agreement…Any signing without my signature is completely without value. So any agreement between the United States and the North Vietnamese is their affair." With the possibilities of a final settlement to a tragic war seemingly near at hand, we could sluff this off as the rantings of a defeated tyrant.

The next step was for "top administrative spokesmen" to begin to speak of complications in the agreement, complications which would delay the proposed deadline for the official signing. The North Vietnamese became infuriated -- they rightfully claimed that the Americans had negotiated in bad faith. They saw no complications; only American betrayal. The North Vietnamese hold life sacred, minor details can be worked out as a matter of course, an end to the great suffering is the prime concern, an end which gives meaning to that suffering and which places the people more firmly on the path of self-determination and liberation.

In the days that followed, the meaning of the newly discovered `complications' became clear. They were but the latest act of deception and trickery by "Tricky Dick" Nixon -- a cruel and callous act which juggled human lives in his quest for a second term of Presidency. After over 10 years of war, after the loss of hundreds of thousands of lives, and with the fate of countless prisoners of war hanging in the balance, Nixon would pretend that peace was near, while actually having no intention at all to end his criminal war of aggression.

With this final performance, the foul and degenerate campaign to re-elect the President came to a close. Only this false peace proposal could surpass his attempt to `bug' and `spy' with electronic surveillence equipment the Democratic National Headquarters in the infamous Watergate Affair; could surpass a campaign which in both intent and design threatened the lives of Black and oppressed people everywhere. We stand in intercommunal solidarity with the heroic people of Vietnam -- the war of genocide must come to a halt.

ALL POWER TO THE PEOPLE

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AN IMPORTANT AND COMPELLING CRITIQUE OF THE BLACK PANTHER PARTY BY ITS CHIEF THEORETICIAN

With an honesty as rare as it is persuasive, Huey P. Newton, founder of the Black Panther Party, records the internal struggles, rivalries, and contradictions within the Party-certain that only by recognizing these contradictions and building from them can the Party "clarify and advance the struggle"

TO DIE FOR THE PEOPLE
the writings of

HUEY P. NEWTON

Clothboud $7.95, Vintage paperbound $1.95 Now at your bookstore RANDOM HOUSE

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EDUCATE TO LIBERATE

The Samuel Napier Intercommunal Youth Institute is a school designed to help our children think. It is located in the Oakland Bay Area and it points out through example that other schools have provided only the most basic courses. Courses that have little relevance to the survival of poor people. We are trying to expand the concept that the whole world is the children's classroom.

The youth at Samuel Napier receive instruction in language arts, mathematics, science, health, physical education, political education and People's art. All of these courses are geared to the development of a well-rounded human being.

We need the help of all interested people in making our school run smoothly. Since its inception in 1970, its enrollment has rapidly increased. We need more instructors. Instructors with everchanging ideas to cope with the everchanging ideas of the children.

If you have teaching skills and can donate some of your time, please contact the Black Panther Party at 8501 East 14th Street, Oakland, California; or phone 562-2086. The children, our youth, are our future. Without their growth we, as a people, can not survive.

ALL POWER TO THE PEOPLE.

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BLACK PANTHER PARTY PROGRAM MARCH 29, 1972 PLATFORM: WHAT WE WANT WHAT WE BELIEVE

1. WE WANT FREEDOM. WE WANT POWER TO DETERMINE THE DESTINY OF OUR BLACK AND OPPRESSED COMMUNITIES.

We believe that Black and oppressed people will not be free until we are able to determine our destinies in our own communities ourselves, by fully controlling all the institutions which exist in our communities.

2. WE WANT FULL EMPLOYMENT FOR OUR PEOPLE.

We believe that the federal government is responsible and obligated to give every person employment or a guaranteed income. We believe that if the American businessmen will not give full employment, then the technology and means of production should be taken from the businessmen and placed in the community so that the people of the community can organize and employ all of its people and give a high standard of living.

3. WE WANT AN END TO THE ROBBERY BY THE CAPITALIST OF OUR BLACK AND OPPRESSED COMMUNITIES.

We believe that this racist government has robbed us and now we are demanding the overdue debt of forty acres and two mules. Forty acres and two mules were promised 100 years ago as restitution for slave labor and mass murder of Black people. We will accept the payment in currency which will be distributed to our many communities. The American racist has taken part in the slaughter of over fifty million Black people. Therefore, we feel this is a modest demand that we make.

4. WE WANT DECENT HOUSING, FIT FOR THE SHELTER OF HUMAN BEINGS.

We believe that if the landlords will not give decent housing to our Black and oppressed communities, then the housing and the land should be made into cooperatives so that the people in our communities, with government aid, can build and make decent housing for the people.

5. WE WANT EDUCATION FOR OUR PEOPLE THAT EXPOSES THE TRUE NATURE OF THIS DECADENT AMERICAN SOCIETY. WE WANT EDUCATION THAT TEACHES US OUR TRUE HISTORY AND OUR ROLE IN THE PRESENT-DAY SOCIETY.

We believe in an educational system that will give to our people a knowledge of self. If you do not have knowledge of yourself and your position in the society and the world, then you will have little chance to know anything else.

6. WE WANT COMPLETELY FREE HEALTH CARE FOR ALL BLACK AND OPPRESSED PEOPLE.

We believe that the government must provide, free of charge, for the people, health facilities which will not only treat our illnesses, most of which have come about as a result of our oppression, but which will also develop preventative medical programs to guarantee our future survival. We believe that mass health education and research programs must be developed to give all Black and oppressed people access to advanced scientific and medical information, so we may provide ourselves with proper medical attention and care.

7. WE WANT AN IMMEDIATE END TO POLICE BRUTALITY AND MURDER OF BLACK PEOPLE, OTHER PEOPLE OF COLOR, ALL OPPRESSED PEOPLE INSIDE THE UNITED STATES.

We believe that the racist and fascist government of the United States uses its domestic enforcement agencies to carry out its program of oppression against Black people, other people of color and poor people inside the United States. We believe it is our right, therefore, to defend ourselves against such armed forces, and that all Black and oppressed people should be armed for self-defense of our homes and communities against these fascist police forces.

8. WE WANT AN IMMEDIATE END TO ALL WARS OF AGGRESSION.

We believe that the various conflicts which exist around the world stem directly from the aggressive desires of the U.S. ruling circle and government to force its domination upon the oppressed people of the world. We believe that if the U.S. government or its lackeys do not cease these aggressive wars that it is the right of the people to defend themselves by any means necessary against their aggressors.

9. WE WANT FREEDOM FOR ALL BLACK AND POOR OPPRESSED PEOPLE NOW HELD IN U.S. FEDERAL, STATE, COUNTY, CITY AND MILITARY PRISONS AND JAILS. WE WANT TRIALS BY A JURY OF PEERS FOR ALL PERSONS CHARGED WITH SO-CALLED CRIMES UNDER THE LAWS OF THIS COUNTRY.

We believe that the many Black and poor oppressed people now held in U.S. prisons and jails have not received fair and impartial trials under a racist and fascist judicial system and should be free from incarceration. We believe in the ultimate elimination of all wretched, inhuman penal institutions, because the masses of men and women imprisoned inside the United States or by the U.S. military are the victims of oppressive conditions which are the real cause of their imprisonment. We believe that when persons are brought to trial that they must be guaranteed, by the United States, juries of their peers, attorneys of their choice and freedom from imprisonment while awaiting trials.

10. WE WANT LAND, BREAD, HOUSING, EDUCATION, CLOTHING, JUSTICE, PEACE AND PEOPLE'S COMMUNITY CONTROL OF MODERN TECHNOLOGY.

When, in the course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume, among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the laws of nature and nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. That, to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed; that, whenever any form of government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the right of the people to alter or to abolish it, and to institute a new government, laying its foundation on such principles, and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their safety and happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and, accordingly, all experience hath shown that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But, when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same object, evinces a design to reduce them under absolute despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such government, and to provide new guards for their future security.

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