1970 Black Panther Newspaper Calling for the Exoneration of Bobby Seale
Newspaper
The Black Panther. Vol. V, No. 24. San Francisco, 14 December 1970. Between the years of 1968-1972, this Black Panther-affiliated publication sold a hundred thousand copies a week, making it the most widely circulated Black newspaper. 20 pages. 18" x 11.5." This issue includes an op-ed on New York City landlords and bears a front-page declaration: "New York City Criminal Slumlords are Crime Partners With City Government Officials and Courts." While The Black Panther held a special emphasis on domestic issues, the paper often covered stories on an international scale. Inside are several articles pertaining to American imperialism, including a message for Black G.I.s in South Korea, penned by Kathleen Cleaver in Pyongyang, North Korea. At the time, many left-wing activists considered North Korea to be a new frontier of socialism and found commonality with the population's anti-colonialist attitude. "You've been tricked into being a Black lackey for the White racist government of the United States, presently participating in the systematic repression, brutalization, and torture of the Korean people," she writes. There is also a statement from Eldridge Cleaver on Bobby Seale, who at the time was on trial for the torture and murder of 19-year-old Alex Rackley, another Black Panther and suspected FBI COINTELPRO informer. Cleaver says that this was a wrongful accusation, that Seale was uninvolved in the murder and the US government wanted any opportunity to imprison the party leader. Inside the paper are around 40 photographs and cartoons. The front page depicts a group of both white and black young people before a derelict tenement building. On the back is a full-color illustration by revolutionary artist Emory Douglas. In it, a white uniformed man lies facedown and bleeding while an armed Black person, cut off from the knee up, stands behind. The caption reads: "Every Door That The Fascists Attempt to Kick Down Will Put Them Deeper Into the Pit of Death. Shoot to Kill." This paper is an interesting artifact of the Black Panther movement and is in very good condition.Item #18806
Price: $550.00
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