




The 1960`s was a time era where the Civil Rights Movement took place, the Vietnam War was in action, racial discrimination was visible and Martin Luther king Jr was killed along with the president John F. Kennedy. The 1960`s was a time era when change started to take place and back then, change wasn’t a good thing. People weren’t accepting of change and wanted things to continue the way they were.  People of color were trying to veto the discrimination towards African Americans, they wanted equality and to be treated with respect just like a white American would be treated. They wanted their voting rights, and brutality to disappear. “Black Power” is proving to the readers the harsh life African Americans had to live in due to the incidents that’s occurred in the 1960`s. 

Multiple actions took place in order to protect the African Americans in the 1960`s and the Black Panther Party had a major impact. Police brutality was an uproar and increased significantly during this time and people of color were the main ones targeted.  Racism was a major issue during this time and the discrimination started to increase due to the unwanted change that was taking place. When this establishment of the Black Panther Party was found on the 15th of October in 1966, according to the Britannica article, Americans of color would go to the black neighborhoods and patrol the streets to protect their people. The increase of poverty, lead to the increase of the brutality and being treated unfairly. Black citizens were fighting for their independence and their liberation from the white Americans. They didn’t want conflict to arise, they wanted to be looked at as a normal American, who has the same rights as everyone else. Another conflict that targeted African Americans specifically was the Vietnam Draft. The unfair draft allowed white citizens to buy their way out, forcing the blacks to go into battle because they weren’t able to afford the wage to get out of going. People were still in need to go into war and since the whites paid the wage, blacks were the only option left due to their lack of income. Again, this was another way the blacks were discriminated against due to the poverty that took place, leaving people of color in a poor state. The party differentiated between the racist whites and the non-racist whites and associated themselves with members of the latter crew, “regarded all white people as oppressors” (Black Panther Party). Having the Black Panther Party allowed people of color to have their own defense mechanism; their own army defending them. Knowing all of this took place shows the lifestyle of a colored American and how unfairly they were treated due to the color of their skin. Being a different color led the white Americans to think they were above all and that they superior. As mentioned earlier equality was the main goal the blacks were trying to gain from the white society.

In order to promote equality, Martin Luther King Jr. whom was a legend in the 1960`s, gave a speech titled “I have a Dream”. When he was assassinated, he left the earth physically but he left as a hero for all the African Americans. His speech spoke out to the black society about receiving equality between the two racial groups. The blacks never meant to start conflict or even start a “war” between them and the whites; just to be treated the same as the person next to them. The color of a man’s skin does not determine that man’s character. The constant judging of a colored person by a white American was brutal and was wrong, the good lord above didn’t create colored people to be treated any different than a non-colored person, he created us all to be loved and accepted by other despite the differences between the two.  They wanted the equality where “little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls as brothers and sisters” (King) and have the society remain civil. Dr. King’s speech points out that no one is above anyone and that everyone was going to have to accept the change and just move past this conflict. The whites are making the blacks look like the bad guys in the situation when all they wanted to do was reason with them and gain unity. Rights are not something one can just take away and give like it’s some punishment or reward, every person is entitled to the same rights as the person next to them. “One hundred years later, the life of the Negro is still sadly crippled by the manacles of segregation and the chains of discrimination” (American Rhetoric).  Every man is born free and their rights can’t be taken away from them due to the color of their skin. 

Carmichael’s piece, “Black Power”, took place during the 1960`s and knowing the background information about that time era further supports Carmichael’s point he’s making in his story. Carmichael mainly focuses on the unfair treatment given to the people of color and he points out multiple incidences where colored people are discriminated against. One of the points he makes, is that blacks weren’t able to vote in peace, in fact a bill had to be passed for them to vote; the white people tried to convince them that they weren’t allowed to or not important enough to vote. “I knew I could vote…Every time I tried I was shot, killed or jailed, beaten or economically deprived (Carmichael 315).” The main goal Carmichael was trying to achieve was to eliminate racism in America by re-evaluating the way Americans look and operate on situations. The draft for the Vietnam War shows how society discriminated against African Americans by setting a wage that only white citizens could afford to pay in order to get out of the draft. He mentions “people have been upset because we’ve said that integration was irreverent when initiated by blacks, and that in fact it was a subterfuge, an insidious subterfuge, for maintenance of white supremacy (Carmichael 314).” Having that said, blacks started to have a fantasy of being able to be next to a white person on the streets, in a restaurant, or just sitting next to them. According to whites, this was wrong and it wasn’t going to happen, then again supporting Carmichael`s point of discrimination towards people of color. In fact, the exact opposite happened, police brutality began to increase towards people of color. Causing an uproar within the society and conflicts began to arise. Unity is wanted by the blacks, “the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together (King, Martin Luther)”, just being able to be seen and treated the same would’ve stopped the conflict between the two races. Carmichael wanted to reveal to the public; life of a colored person back in the 1960`s and comparing it to the luxury life of a white person and showing how society conveys blacks living like peasants.  

The racial flare-ups in the 1960`s made it difficult for African Americans to live in peace in their own community due to discrimination between the civilians. By people (whites) being ignorant lead to disrespect towards their own kind. Change was a big deal and even though whites didn’t want to accept the fact that blacks were just like them, they had to move on with life. There are greater tragedies happening in the world than to be worrying about someone being different or not as worth as the person next to them just because they’re a different skin color. “This note was a promise that all men, yes, black men as well as white men, would be guaranteed the “unalienable Rights” of “Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness (American Rhetoric).” Every man born is entitled to these rights, they can’t just be taken away because someone is different. If whites were more accepting of a person’s character rather than color, then the 1960`s wouldn’t have been an explosion.  Although, that wasn`t the case, blacks were discriminated against, abused, neglected, and judged by nothing more than the fact that they were not like the rest. African Americans were furious and couldn’t understand why there was so much hatred. “we will not be satisfied until “justice rolls down like waters, and righteousness like a mighty stream (American Rhetoric).”





