
Black Power, by Stokely Carmichael is an extremely influential piece dealing with segregation in the late 1960’s. At this time, segregation was at an all-time high, and so was the fight against it. Black Power, is a speech written and spoken by Stokley Carmichael at UC Berkley on October of 1966 amongst a crowd full of white people. At the time the idea of a black man swaying a crowd of white people was simply silly and highly doubtful. Carmichael had one thing that he excelled at above anything else, public speaking. For this assignment, a lot of research was put in to it and I sought out for articles that would enhance my thoughts and ideas on the reading. Comparing literary texts to back up a stance on a topic or story is a great way to further an understanding of the importance of a text. Through research of the art of public speaking, it was relevant that Carmichael possessed all the qualities of a great public speaker and for this reason he is able to convey his message/idea to promote a great change for years to come. Public speaking has the power to change the world for the better or for the worse, and it is without a doubt the most important trait a person can have in politics. 

Stokley Carmichael, also known as Kwame Ture, was a Trinidadian-American who came over to the U.S. at the age of 11. Ever since his arrival to the states, he became a prominent figure in the Civil Rights movement. Carmichael was a leader in many aspects throughout his life, first he was a leader of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), then he was named the “Honorary Prime Minister” of the Black Panther Party, and lastly he was a leader of the All-African People’s Revolutionary Party (A-APRP). If you couldn’t tell from the organizations that Carmichael was affiliated with, he was very passionate about segregation amongst African Americans in the United States of America. He worked alongside with extremely important figures such as Malcom X and Martin Luther King during the 1950’s and 1960’s. Carmichael was so passionate about his work and wanted to reach as many people as possible to promote change in the U.S. In order to achieve this, he went to various places to speak and educate the people of how awful this segregation is and how it’s affecting the nation as a whole. The one speech that stands out from the rest is the UC Berkley speech of 1966. Carmichael got in front of roughly about 10,000 people, where about 95% of them were white-middle class college students. Carmichael starts his speech off with some dry humor by calling UC Berkley the “white intellectual ghetto of the West”. He has this charismatic trait about him and the way he presents himself. The thing that got to people when he spoke was the cold truth of what life was like through the eyes of a black man. His speech is geared to be heard by the ears of black people. Why did Carmichael specifically address this audience? How will this audience react to what he has to say? 

There was a very interesting article called, “The Art of Public Speaking”, by Brian Tracy. In this article, Tracy breaks down public speaking in to two parts. The first part is to find something that you are passionate about or has an impact on you. This relates to Carmichael without a doubt, his passion towards segregation couldn’t be matched. He gave 110% to this cause and it really showed through his emotions when he spoke. The second part of public speaking, in the words of Tracy, “Simple Preparation”. Tracy says you must know 100 words for every word that you speak, meaning actually look out to the crowd, instead of reading off of a piece of paper. To truly be a great public speaker, you can tell obvious lies and statements that simply aren’t true, while the people tend to overlook these issues and believe word for word what you’re saying. 

In my thesis above, I stated that one could use public speaking for the betterment of society or for the worse. I’m afraid exactly 50 years after Carmichaels UC Berkley speech the worst has arrived. With recent news of the 2016 presidential election, I tried to ignore it but my thoughts wouldn’t allow it. President-elect Donald Trump took the nation by storm and did so in one way, public speaking. Donald Trump proposed preposterous ideas such as building a wall on the Mexico border, getting rid of all immigrants, and demonstrates bigotry against minorities and women. As many people took his presidential race as a joke, he went to various places around the U.S. and straight up lied about many different topics, and won over people. With his background of being a reality TV star and a very successful business owner, many people counted him out from the start. What he used to his advantage was his voice and he was able to reach enough of the population with it. The way that he presented himself and his use of constant repetition brainwashed citizens and believed everything he said to be true. The thought of Trump as our next president is indeed terrifying but it reiterates the fact that humans can be swayed solely on public speaking. 

There is one document that is pretty significant considering our nation abides by it, yes, the constitution. The first words in the preamble are, “We the people”, Carmichael and Trump have very different connotations of the word “we”. As far as I know the only “we” that Trump cares about are white males. Also in the preamble it states, “In order to create a more perfect Union”. Union- the action or fact of joining or being joined, especially in a political context. Our “Union” is going to be more divided and corrupt now than it has ever been, doing the exact opposite of what a union should be. Carmichael’s mission was to end segregation and to initiate dialogue about the topic, whereas Trump is forcing any immigrant/minority who doesn’t deserve to be here kicked out and redefining what it’s like to be “American”. It is so sad to see that all the progress over the last 50 years to be belittled by an antagonist politician like Trump. Carmichael advocated two very important things in his speech. First, go inside black communities and address the damage of racism in their community. Secondly, go in to white communities and educate them about anti-racism. As a nation, we have come a long way in regards to racism, but the American people took a huge step backwards in the fight for equality. It’s imperative that going forward as a nation we become more educated and attentive. Many uneducated people buy in to radical ideas and deem them to be true without hearing any facts. The art of public speaking wouldn’t be as crucial as it is now if people were simply educated and could learn what’s right from wrong. 

Both Carmichael and Trump, as different as they are, do share some qualities about themselves. They are both fearless in their approach to speaking to U.S. citizens. They both promote themselves in an aggressive manner and passionately feel the way they do and express that emotion to the people. They are well prepared in their speeches and seek to promote a great change. Public speaking isn’t always looked at that big of an importance in everyday life, but with what history shows us, it can change people’s opinions, way of life, and ultimately the direction of the way our country is going. If there’s anything that I want you to take away form this is that your voice matters and if you articulate your thoughts and find a way to reach a large amount of people, the sky is the limit. The key now is to use your voice to better society as a whole, not just for the privileged. 

 