Elbert Howard

Elbert Howard (2012)

Elbert Howard (born January 5, 1938 in Chattanooga , Tennessee , USA ; † July 23, 2018 in Santa Rosa , California , USA), known as "Big Man", was a veteran of the radical Afro-American civil rights movement .

Howard was one of six civil rights activists who founded the Black Panther Party for Self-Defense in Oakland , California in October 1966 to defend themselves against everyday police attacks, legal discrimination and disadvantage against the black population. One of the key points of the BPP was the organized, militant self-defense of blacks against the excessive violence of a police apparatus, which was predominantly in the hands of white Americans. The name of the (Black Panther) party was derived from the Lowndes County Freedom Organization (LCFO) Alabama, founded in 1965 by the Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee SNCC activist Stokely Carmichael, which aimed to enforce the right to vote for the black population . This Black Panther emblem was picked up by the media and the LCFO soon became known as the Black Panther Party. When the Black Panther Party (for Self Defense) was founded in Oakland in October 1966 with the significant contribution of Bobby Seale and Huey Newton, who had already been active at the SNCC and the LCFO, the LCFO emblem was adopted and reached on this Wise worldwide distribution. As a left-wing organization of blacks and their community, the BPP wanted to deliberately distance itself from the non-violent civil rights movement under Martin Luther King and the religiously nationalized Nation of Islam .

In his partying years, Howard was Deputy Minister of Information for the BPP, traveled to many countries and founded numerous solidarity groups. He was one of the editors of the weekly party organ “The Black Panther - Black Community News Service,” which in its prime had a circulation of 200,000. He played an important role in the development and implementation of some of the 65 social programs that the Black Panther Party launched from 1966 until it was dissolved in 1982. Howard initiated a. a. the 'Free Breakfast for Children Program' (wiki), which was supposed to ensure that children from the poor Oakland families got a free breakfast so that their (successful) school attendance did not fail due to a poor diet alone. This program later became the model for a number of government breakfast programs. Howard also initiated a free medical clinic for sickle cell disease patients , as well as a study and work program for prisoners who had been released on parole. In 1974, when due to internal quarrels about the fundamental orientation of the party and the subsequent factioning, fatal clashes with the police, also various acts of sabotage, infiltration and dismantling actions by the FBI (see COINTELPRO - COunter INTELligence PROgram), the BPP was already in decline found, Howard - like other key members - left the party and returned to Tennessee.

Life

Elbert Howard was born in January 1938, the only child of Emma (née Hawkshaw) and Anderson Howard in Chattanooga , Tennessee . His father died before he was even two years old and as a result he was raised by his mother, but also by aunt and uncle. Although he was surrounded by a caring family, the boy quickly realized that he was growing up in a racist, unjust, ' segregated ' society, because he witnessed the daily attacks, witnessed one of his relatives being killed by members of the Ku Klux Klan (KKK) was beaten and flogged. In 1956 he volunteered for the US Air Force in order to be able to support his mother, who had meanwhile become ill, but also to escape the racist south of the USA with its limited opportunities for blacks . He was initially stationed at Travis Air Force Base in Fairfield , California , and then served for several years in the US Air Force in Europe. In 1960 he was honorably discharged from the service of the US Armed Forces at Travis Air Force Base in Northern California.

Howard took (through GI Bill ) at Merritt College (s. Engl. Wiki) in Oakland to study political science . During his studies he took part in meetings with African-American groups, where he met Huey Newton and Bobby Seale , who also studied at Merritt College, and became friends with them. Seale and Huey were both politically active, partly in the same organizations. All three were interested in “black” history and met frequently for political discussions, read the writings of Malcolm X (“The Ballot or the Bullet”, “The Autobiography of Malcolm X”) Mao's “ Words of Chairman Mao Tsetung ”, the Writings by WEB Du Bois , Frantz Fanon , Hồ Chí Minh , Che Guevara , Fidel Castro and many others, always looking for a concrete solution to the disastrous situation of their own community.

Individual evidence

1. ↑ New York Times July 26, 2018: Elbert Howard, a Founder of the Black Panthers, Dies at 80
2. ↑ Michael X Delli Carpini: Black Panther Party: 1966-1982. University of Pennsylvania 2000
3. ^ It's About Time - Black Panther Party Legacy & Alumni: Elbert "Big Man" Howard: Panther on the Prowl
4. ↑ Some editions of The Black Panther - Black Community News Service
5. ^ The Black Panther Party Research Project - Black Panther Community Programs
6. ↑ San Francisco Bay View July 30, 2018: Rest in power, Elbert 'Big Man' Howard, founding father of the Black Panther Party
7. ^ East Bay Times August 25, 2018: Black Panthers, community gather to commemorate former founder Elbert “Big Man” Howard
8. ↑ San Francisco Bay View July 30, 2018: Rest in power, Elbert 'Big Man' Howard, founding father of the Black Panther Party
9. ↑ The Press Democrat July 24, 2018: Black Panther Party co-founder Elbert 'Big Man' Howard, 80, this in Santa Rosa
10. ^ Smithsonian July 26, 2018: Black Panther Co-Founder Elbert “Big Man” Howard Dies at 80
11. ↑ analysis & criticism No. 510/20. October 2006: The greatest threat to US internal security. The Black Panther Party was founded 40 years ago
12. ^ East Bay Times August 25, 2018: Black Panthers, community gather to commemorate former founder Elbert “Big Man” Howard
13. ↑ New York Times ????? Elbert Howard, a Founder of the Black Panthers, Dies at 80
14. ↑ Black Youth Project July 30, 2018: Elbert Howard, one of the Black Panther Party founders, dies at 80
15. ^ Smithsonian July 26, 2018: Black Panther Co-Founder Elbert "Big Man" Howard Dies at 80
16. ^ It's About Time - Black Panther Party Legacy & Alumni: Elbert "Big Man" Howard: When I joined the Black Panther Party
17. ^ It's About Time - Black Panther Party Legacy & Alumni: Elbert "Big Man" Howard: When I joined the Black Panther Party
18. ^ It's About Time - Black Panther Party Legacy & Alumni: Elbert "Big Man" Howard: When I joined the Black Panther Party