The Black Panther Party Essay -- essays research papers fc

"There is nothing more dangerous than a large segment of people in society that feel that they have no place or stake in it, who feel they have nothing to lose. People who have stake in the society perpetuate that society, when they don't have it, they unconsciously want to destroy it." Unknown As a culture, we are told how to act, think, and speak among other things. We are taught to do what is considered "right" and if we choose not to, we are punished, ridiculed, and considered a menace to society. We are considered thuggish and belittled and put down for living in an alternative way. Don't get me wrong, there is some good in having a controlled society because it brings some order and stability within our society. However, the questions at hand are, could there be a way for those who do realize that we're being controlled to free themselves from the power and control that causes them to become oppressed? Could it be that we are bound and constrained and unable to have some type of agency in order to be free? If we can free ourselves, what type of agency is used? These questions are the basis for my paper. I plan to present examples of control and oppression through the film Panther that shows the struggle of the Black Panther Party of Self-Defense. The film takes place in the 1960's and it shows the struggles that the members had to go through in order to form some type of agency to free themselves from the control and oppression that the government had over their lives and their community. Huey Newton and Bobby Seale were two African-American men growing up in the ghetto of California where they saw and experienced racism and police brutality. There voices weren't heard when it came to their communities and it took three young children to die by car crashes, and a peaceful candlelight vigil that turned into a fight between a neighborhood and the police (In which the police covered up their badges so that no one could report them to the police department) for them to want to make... ...oes have a place in society because without it, there would be no stability within our society and everything would be chaotic and confusing. However, for those who don't want to be controlled, and do have a form of agency which they feel will free them really don't seem to be free anyway. It seems to me that no matter what you do, say, or learn you are always controlled. I thought that the fact that the Panther Party becoming knowledgeable would have worked very well but soon some laws were changed such as the one concerning being able to carry firearms as long as they were in clear view. After all they went through they still weren't free. Many of the Panthers were either killed while fighting for the cause or are now political prisoners. So, from my observation, the only agency available to free oneself from oppression is, to become knowledgeable and that only works to a certain extent. I guess there is no plain yes or no answer to my question about whether we can free ourselves from oppression. It's as if you think you've won when you really haven't. Works Cited Panther. Dir. Mario Van Peebles. Polygram Video. 1995.