
With any historically significant piece of literature, it is important to think in the context of that time, arguably more so with topics that carry as much emotional weight as the civil rights movement. Historians must delve into the current events of that time period that likely had an effect on the piece being examined to understand the "why of when." In Stokely Carmichael's speech to the students of Berkeley, titled "Black Power," Carmichael references key events of the time to better explain the ideology of the Black Power movement to these students. It is essential to note that this speech represents a significant personal, ideological shift, a complete 180-degree turn, on how to address the problems of civil rights.

A reoccurring theme in Carmichael's speech is the hypocrisy of America's attempts and overall failure to impose freedom on the world. He explains this as both a domestic failure, with civil rights, and a foreign policy failure, emphasizing the war in Vietnam. Injustices witnessed during his time in the south with the "Freedom Riders," as well as his own arrest in Neshoba County, Mississippi, certainly shaped the views expressed in his speech. In addition, Carmichael chose to engage a group that was already heavily involved in creating social change. UC Berkeley is infamous as the epicenter of student anti-war protests of the 1960s. With this is mind, he connects these two examples of corruption (civil rights and the Vietnam war), stating that both can be traced back to the same root problem; American society as a whole has forgotten that it has the power to say "No!" to its government. 

Responding to the ineffectiveness of the peaceful protest movement and the lack of action by top government officials, Stokely Carmichael calls McNamara, the Former Secretary of Defense a racist, Former Secretary of State Rusk a fool and President Johnson a buffoon. "These men are not god," according to Carmichael, "It's the law of each of us. It is the law of each of us saying that we will not allow them to make us hired killers ... " adding that, " this country will only be able to stop the war in Vietnam when the young men who are made to fight it begin to say, "Hell, no, we ain't going." Carmichael emphasizes the Vietnam protests, as a means of comparison to the civil rights movement, believing that in both situations, citizens cannot be passive.  It is no longer enough to merely say no, the people must respond with a "Hell, no" and action; maybe then the institutions that are in place to protect its' citizens freedom, will end its' oppression.

 Vietnam is a continuing subject in the speech "Black Power." Carmichael provides insight into his shift away from nonviolence when he likens his frustrations about civil rights with those of the students against Vietnam. Just as it is not enough for the students who are exempt from the draft to protest, they need the poor whites to reject the draft on their own behalf, so too is it not enough for only blacks to protest. He pleads for the white population to act as he claims they have the real power in the government. 

Carmichael's speech likely served only to bring awareness and did not have any direct, tangible, effect. He reveals a perspective to the students of Berkeley that many outside of the most radicalized might not have been exposed to. His speech indicates a major change not only in the civil rights movement, but also in Stokely Carmichael's previous beliefs. Carmichael was formerly the chairman of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee. However, in his speech, Carmichael offers up an alternative approach to civil rights, an approach first coined in this speech, the "Black Power" movement.  "We been saying 'freedom' for six years," he said. "What we are going to start saying now is 'Black Power.'"

 His personal transition from non-violent integrationalism to that of black power hints at an overarching frustration among blacks. In his speech he says that the ways of MLK and other civil rights leaders is ineffective and insulting. Most blacks had become cynical and lost faith in the theory of nonviolent resistance. Black power is not only a change in his personal beliefs, it is also counter to the popular trend.  He goes on to say that, blacks do not need laws to tell them they can do things. Rather, laws are to tell white people what they cannot prevent black people from doing.

This caused immediate backlash among the white opposition and even a portion of the black population. From the most devout of the black power movement, an organization known as the Black Panther Party emerged. Only a few years passed before they began to carry out attacks on white people. Ironically, their actions mirrored those of their opposition, the KKK. Both groups started with the purpose of cultural preservation and transitioned to violence that reached its climax in the late 60s. Bombings, kidnappings and lynch mobs were all common place, with the intention of inflicting maximum terror.

Only by exploring the historical context of Stokely Carmichael's speech at Berkeley is it possible to fully understand why this speech happened and to what end. Events such as the Vietnam war and what Carmichael believed to be the failure of other civil rights leaders, clearly impacted both his chosen audience and his change of heart toward nonviolence. The implications of Carmichael's speech were not immediate, but they were significant. His idea of the Black Power Movement inspired a new generation of proud Black protesters and possibly out of fear, a whole new generation of whites to oppose them.

