The Breakfast Club - IDKMYDE: Bloody Lowndes

Episode Date: February 9, 2024

On this episode of #IDKMYDE, We're diving into a lesser-known slice of history – the birth of the Black Panther Party for Self Defense in Oakland, California, and its roots in the rural, mighty Lowndes County, Alabama.  From the Lowndes County Freedom Organization to Stokely Carmichael's involvement with SNCC and the iconic Black Panther emblem, we're unraveling the threads of political activism that laid the groundwork for the Black Panther movement.  Join the journey of discovery with me as we navigate the complexities of Black Power, political parties, and the dynamic history that shaped our fight against racism. Tune in, and let's explore the untold tales together! IG: @_idkmyde_ | @BdahtTV | @blackeffectSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Had enough of this country? Ever dreamt about starting your own? I planted the flag. This is mine. I own this. It's surprisingly easy. 55 gallons of water, 500 pounds of concrete. Or maybe not. No country willingly gives up their territory. Oh my God.

What is that? Bullets. Listen to Escape from Zakistan. We need help! That's Escape from Z-A- Stan on the I heart radio app, Apple podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Now, wait a minute. Season two of, I didn't know, maybe you didn't either. Right. You're on the black effect podcast network.

I've told you about my borderline obsession with the black Panther party for self-defense, but I've recently learned that their Genesis is Oakland, California, just as much as it is Lowndes County. Hell, I'd never even heard of a Lowndes County. Lowndes County is described as a rural, economically deprived county sandwiched between two historic giants, Selma and Montgomery, Alabama. Now, you need to know the Lowndes County Freedom Organization, the LCFO.

They were a local political party, and the LCFO chose the crouching Black Panther as its symbol. Now, Stokely Carmichael, who's the originator of the phrase Black Power, was in Lowndes working with the SNCC. They were trying to register voters. Now, the SNCC is the SNCC, the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee. SNCC. They were a group put together to help register voters

and galvanize that Black enthusiasm around voting. Stuff we're gonna need this year, 2024. Now, Alabama laws require political parties to have a symbol. So the new party chose the Black Panther, which was eventually adopted by Huey P. Newton and Bobby Seale when they created the Black Panther Party for self-defense. They said they chose the Black Panther because, like the Panther, Lowndes County's African-Americans had been pushed back into the corner

and would come out fighting for life or death. The media dubbed the LCFO the Black Panther Party. The spirit of the LCFO spread across the country. And so did their party's Black Power slogan and their Black Panther emblem. Hence the similarities when Bobby Seals and Huey P. Newton founded the Black Panther Party for Self-Defense in 1966. But folks ain't like that down there in Lowndes. No, no, no, no. See, the Black Panther Party for Self-Defense was too militant for their liking.

See, the LCFO viewed themselves as a political party that didn't encourage the use of violence at all. Black Panther Party for Self-Defense viewed themselves as a political party as well. However, they wanted all the smoke. No provocation, however, always with retaliation. Defense viewed themselves as a political party as well. However, they wanted all the smoke. No provocation, however, always with retaliation. Hasn't that thing constantly plagued us all when we're deciding how to attack this visceral plague of a disease called racism? Should we be non-violent like Martin or get freedom by any means necessary like Malcolm? A non-violent political party like LCFO or a revolutionary political party like the Black Panther Party for Self-Defense. There's a book called Bloody Lounge, and it has a careful

analysis of the 1966 election that paints a clearer picture of those times. It's called Bloody Lounge, Civil Rights and Black Power in Alabama's Black Belt. It's by Hassan Kwame Jeffries. And I didn't know. Maybe you didn't either. I didn't know. Had enough of this country? Ever dreamt about starting your own?

I planted the flag. This is mine. I own this. It's surprisingly easy. 55 gallons of water, 500 pounds of concrete. Or maybe not. No country willingly gives up their concrete. Or maybe not. No country willingly gives up their territory.

Oh my God. What is that? Bullets. Listen to Escape from Zakistan. That's Escape from Z-A-Q-istan on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.