Keith Reed
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On the heels of Beyoncé’s performance at the Super Bowl, where she referenced the Black Panthers, I’m reminded of a speech delivered by Huey Newton on the liberation of women’s and gay movements. Newton, along with Bobby Seale, founded the Black Panthers.
This speech was given in 1970, a year after the Stonewall riots in New York City. In the speech, Newton showed his intellectual prowess in breaking down the animosity harbored for women and gay men. This speech helps to quash the sense of oppression among an oppressed people. I think that this speech is as cogent today as it was back then.
The main message that the Black Panthers had was to promote real equality among race, gender, and class. In the rules for members of the Black Panther party, there are many that can still apply to today. Rules like not committing crimes against black people or stealing or taking from them. This information does not just apply to members of the group but nonmembers as well. People of different ethnic groups could borrow and filter the message to make it applicable to them.
Violence is a phenomenon that affects not only the people involved but their children. It permeates in the relationships that the children have throughout their lives. Four in 10 couples have reported some type of relationship violence, according to the CDC.
In a study done by the National Coalition of Antiviolence programs on hate violence within the LGBTQ+ community, in 2014 gay survivors and victims represented almost 50 percent of the total reports. This number is down from last year, but there also has been a rise in violence against transgender persons.
As an African-American male who belongs to the LGBTQ+ community, these numbers make me feel very uncomfortable. I should not have to worry about being victimized by anyone. Sadly, in the world that we live in today, this is something that never escapes my mind. There are more innocent young African-American males getting killed and violently assaulted by men and women abusing their power. This speech being unearthed and presented in this generation is a necessity.
In the African-American community, being an LGBTQ+ identifying person immediately means that you have to fear for your life. There is so much built up animosity which may stem from insecurities within or the fear that they themselves are LGBTQ+ identifying. Women are also being demeaned in popular culture and reduced to mere stereotypes in the public eye. This causes any feminine voice that strives for equality and upward mobility to be silenced or ridiculed. This is not the way that it should be. If we want equality in one respect, we have to rectify the others. We revere Beyoncé for her Super Bowl performance, but we also should listen to the history behind it.
Huey Newton simply wanted men and women alike to join forces. To discriminate based on gender and sexuality is an archaic way of thinking, and it only halts progress. We are all fighting for the same end goal, equality for everyone. This message not only applies to African Americans, as stated in the speech. the content transcends race boundaries, and it is important to understand.