Ryan RendlemanDaily Egyptian
A former leader of the Black Panther Party told an audience of about 50 people that anecdotes of successful black Americans like Oprah are not indicative of the state of the nation.
Elaine Brown, former chairwoman of the Black Panther Party from 1974 to 1976, spoke in the Student Center Auditorium on Tuesday about the position of blacks in society today. The lecture was part of a series called the "What's Happening!! - African American v. African American pt. 2," which is co-sponsored by the African Student Council.
Natalie Bonner, a senior from Aurora studying economics, said she is part of the Delta Sigma Theta sorority that helped bring Brown to SIUC. The goal of the series is to highlight differences between blacks born in the United States, and those who were born in Africa. She said the discussions were set up to bridge the gap between the two groups.
"We want to better the relationship between native-born African Americans and African Americans who come here from Africa," Bonner said.
Brown said conditions for black Americans have not improved since the 1970s when she was head of the party. The goal then was to create conditions for "revolutionary change."
Brown said success stories do not reveal the true nature of black oppression that still exists in America. She said anecdotal cases do not reveal the truth that black people are still living in a world full of inequality.
"I would say that, statistically, black people live at about the same level that we did (in the 1970s)," Brown said.
Brown took control of the party shortly after Huey Newton, co-founder of the party, fled to Cuba while facing murder charges in the United States. Brown was the first and only woman to lead the Black Panthers. The Panthers disbanded in the early 1980s due to rising legal costs and disagreements within the party.
