The African-Americans And The Black Power Movement

As said previously The Black Power Movement was for the enrichment of African- Americans against the odds of racism that they faced at this time. But the movement did not solely involve Black supremacy. It dealt with improving the African-Americans standard of living socially. Its goals were simply to promote Black Nationalism and Black solidarity, also to create social and political institutions for African-Americans. At this time, Trinidadian-American black activist Stokely Carmichael was rising to power as the leader of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC). The popular term “Black Power” was first acknowledged by him, and naturally became the slogan for this movement. In coming to power “Stokely Carmichael publicly declared that integration was irrelevant” (Jennifer Jensen Wallach, “Arsnick: The Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee in Arkansas” 81) also that "Political and economic power is what the black people have to have." (Black
The people in this party participated in armed guarding of special meetings for the movement, they also fought back police when it was deemed necessary. Most of them lost their lives in this process. However, the impact that the Black Panther Party had on America is significant. African-Americans began to understand who they were and the culture with which they are from by asking themselves questions like “who are you?” (“Who are you?” Malcolm X’s Speech). The Black Power Movement on a whole gave African-Americans racial solidarity, the opportunity to feel as one people against the White Americans. Out of this came the “Raised Fist” which historically can be remembered the time when Tommie Smith and John Carlos did it at the Summer Olympics in Mexico City. The “Raised Fist” showed strength and defiance, but also unity, and at this time this is everything, which the movement