When someone mentions "black power", what or who is it that comes to mind? I personally think of Malcom X, the Black Panthers, and the symbolic black fist raised into the sky. These are interesting associations to have when neither Malcom X nor the Black Panthers are responsible for the coining of "black power". Stokely Carmichael, chairman of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee, is responsible for having first said it in 1966 (Levy, 481). In "Black Power", a speech given at UC Berkley in October 1966, Carmichael explains the views and goals of the black power movement he had formed and organized (The Carolina Reader, 247). The speech, as well as Carmichael's views, was seen as very controversial at the time leading to doubts as to whether the movement would actually achieve any of its goals. By reading "Effects of 'Racism' on the Racial Bureaucracy", a 1972 article within the Public Administration Review journal, and "Black Power's Powerful Legacy", a 2006 article within the Chronicle of Higher Education, readers can see the black power movement's influence in the past as well as the influence it has on modern culture today. Initially seen and portrayed as a failed movement broken off from the more successful civil rights movement, literature covering the black power movement gives a new understanding as to how it influenced change in society in the 1970's.

Following the June 1966 shooting of James Meredith as he marched through Mississippi, many civil rights leaders traveled to Mississippi in order to continue the march (Peniel, 55). Stokely Carmichael was one of these leaders and following his 27th arrest for trespassing, Carmichael declared that he would start saying "black power" in defiance (Peniel, 55). Later that year, he would give a speech at UC Berkeley explaining the movement's views and what he hoped black power could accomplish. The speech was very controversial, blaming white society and institutions for the oppression that African Americans face and asking for the removal of white involvement in the fight for racial equality (Carmichael, 248-260). It also attacked various politicians and government institutions, while taking a firm stance against the army draft and the Vietnam War. In "Black Power's Powerful Legacy", a 2006 article in the Chronicle of Higher Education, Joseph Peniel describes the media's reaction to Carmichael's almost militant views. From Time magazine to the Saturday Evening Post, the Black Power movement was condemned as a "racist philosophy", "distorted cry", and worse (Peniel, 55). Members of the press were not the only one's concerned about Carmichaels views either. According to Peniel, The FBI had amassed around 20,000 pages of files on Stokely Carmichael in the hopes of prosecuting him for sedition (Peniel, 55). The Black Power movement and its charismatic leader had clearly come to be seen as a possible danger in the eyes of society and the authorities. However, media response to Carmichael's fiery rhetoric could not stop the influence the Black Power movement had nor the changes the movement inspired.

In the September/October 1972 issue of Public Administration Review, Burton Levy wrote an article titled "Effects of 'Racism' on the Racial Bureaucracy." Only 6 years after Carmichael's speech at UC Berkeley, the article discussed recent public agency changes alongside the Black Power movement (Levy, 479). Levy does not appear to be supporter of Carmichael's ideas, questioning if they "will ever be found to be socially, politically, or psychologically sound ... " (Levy, 481) He also includes multiple stories of civil rights workers being unable to define racism or dodging questions about the definition in an attempt to portray these civil rights agencies as uninformed and unorganized (Levy, 481-482). Levy goes on to claim that racial agencies are 2nd line organizations unable to deal with he describes as "the so-called 'problem'" of racism (Levy, 482-485). It is abundantly clear that the author of this publication does not believe there is a racial issue to begin with or that Carmichael's ideas will bring about anything positive. That being said, Burton Levy also wrote about the very real changes that public civil rights agencies had seen as an effect of the Black Power movement. Levy reports that multiple civil rights agencies have begun to appoint African American directors as opposed to the white ones that had been appointed before and also goes on to report the recent rise in African American city commissioners within city governments (Levy, 483). This rise in African American appointments is one of Carmichael's desires for the Black Power movement, which can be heard when he says that "black people must be seen in positions of power, doing and articulating for themselves, for themselves." (Carmichael, 253) In his article Levy also discusses the fact that organizations like the NAACP had, at the time, begun to employ less white workers. This is also something Carmichael wanted as a part of the Black Power movement, claiming that they "cannot have white people working in the black community." (Carmichael, 253). Despite the opposition that the Black Power movement faced as a result of its politically aggressive views, the movement did get to see some of the results it wished to see. These accomplishments and coming obstacles would shape the Black Power movement's legacy and how it would be looked at in the future

 In Burton Levy's article, it was found that some of Carmichael's desires for the Black Power movement were being fulfilled, but it also found that civil rights agencies were ultimately disappointing and inadequate at securing equal opportunity at education, employment, and housing for African Americans (Levy, 484). In the article, Levy used an analysis from the Civil Rights Commission to highlight challenges like a lack of adequate staff and resources and a lack of specific civil rights goals (Levy, 484). Unfortunately, the Black Power movement began to lose momentum before it could devise solutions to these challenges. According to Peniel, author of "Black Power's Powerful Legacy", Stokely Carmichael and the Black Power movement began to lose influence as the Black Panthers they had aligned themselves with broke apart, a result of factional divisions and escalating drug use (Peniel, 55). Unable to respond to what Peniel called the "deepening urban crisis" with its leader traveling abroad for most of the time, the Black Power movement faded into obscurity (Peniel, 55). Peniel states that at the time of its demise, the Black Power movement served as a sad lesson warning of social justice movements smeared by angry militants like Carmichael (Peniel, 55). However, the passing of time has allowed Peniel and others to explore alternative ways to look at the Black Power movement. Members of the Civil Rights movement worked with the Black Power movement, with many members often being supporters of both approaches to racial equality (Peniel, 55). This shows that most members of these movements were trying to help fix America's racial problems, but found that there was no clear solution to it. The Black Power movement inspired change in the late 1960's but its legacy continues to inspire today. Musicians like Public Enemy and filmmakers like Spike Lee continued to use Black Power symbols and leaders in their works in the late 1990's, spreading the influence of a movement from decades ago (Peniel, 55). They do this in the hope of inspiring change much like the Black Power movement did long ago.

Much of what is associated with the Black Power movement may be negative reactions to Carmichael's fiery rhetoric, but it cannot downplay the results that came as a result of it. Both of the works displayed the bias and distaste people held against the Black Power movement in response of Carmichael's controversial stances. Despite the reactions of the public, the media, and the authorities, the Black Power was found to have influenced the rise of African Americans to various positions of power both within civil rights agencies and outside of them. This was no small accomplishment to see happen only 6 years after Stokely Carmichael delivered his speech at UC Berkeley. Having seen this effect, it makes it easier to look upon Carmichael's ideas and rhetoric as not controversial, but impactful and influential.

