down. The immediate result of its destruction will be suffering and bloodshed. But the end result will be perpetual peace for mankind." This idealogy being one simliar to those of the "Back to Africa" movement also going on at the time. They would also challenge police brutality, using a method that they called "Policing the Police." They utilized the open-carry gun laws in gun laws in Oakland, California and follow the police around to ensure that they did not aduse their powers. The intial idea behind this being "If you don't attack us, there will be no violence. If you bring violence to us, we will defend ourselves." And that was what they did. Many people think of the Black Panther Party as a violent group who lived by the gun and shot before they thought. This wasn't the case. The Panthers, largely made up of young progressive college students, believed that the time had come for us to retire the ways of gaining equality soley by peaceful protests. They thought that if they were attacked by anyone while peacefully protesting, they should fight back. Another ideology they had, that scared many people was that they were Black Nationalists at first and pushed for a communistic society. Black Nationalism is the advocacy of a seperate status for Black people. Especially in the U.S. Communism is a social, economic, and political ideaology in which the government controls everything. The ultimate goal being everyone is equal. There is no free market so everyone works and gets paid what the government finds appropriate based on family size and needs. This type of economy kills creativity and the theory that we should get paid what we work, but it also means, or should mean, everyone is equal. No one is left behind. The Panthers were also deeply rooted in the beliefs of Malcolm X; beliefs that would carry them far in time.
"by any means necessary"...
"As far a I was concerned, the Panthers were 'baaaaaad'. The Party was more than bad; it was bodacious. The sheer audacity of walking onto the California Senate floor with rifles, demanding that Black people have the right to bear arms and the right to self-defense, made me sit back and take a long look at them."