ALL POWER TO THE PEOPLE
The government’s response to the BPP’s actions is a testament to the corrupt behavior and injustice instilled against blacks. J. Edgar Hoover labeled the BPP as “the greatest threat to internal security of the country”[19] and the FBI attacked the BPP as communists trying to overthrow the government. The FBI ordered COINTELPRO, the FBI's Counterintelligence Program, to destroy the BPP’s leadership and relations with other organizations, and to discredit leaders to reduce support and growth.[20] COINTELPRO intentionally aggravated tense relations between rival black groups, spread false rumors, and planted agents provocateurs.[21] By the time COINTELPRO was discontinued, almost every Panther had been arrested, fled the country, or been killed.[22] The political repression the government tried to force upon the BPP is evidence of the government control and injustice the BPP was trying to fight against. Members were beaten, tortured, and murdered as the government attempted to stop the BPP from growing and carrying out its goals.[23] The government feared the BPP’s influence because the organization criticized an injustice that was perpetuated by those in power and challenged the status quo, a change that many whites were not ready to accept. The FBI attempted to quell this influence by disrupting and eliminating the BPP’s newspaper, the financial base and main channel of communication of the organization. A memo from the FBI sent to field offices stated:
The Black Panther Party newspaper is one of the most effective propaganda operations of the BPP. Distribution of this newspaper is increasing at a regular rate thereby influencing a greater number of individuals in the United States… It is the voice of the BPP and if it could be effectively hindered, it would result in helping to cripple the BPP.[24] The increased number of newspaper sales shows more and more people were becoming receptive to the BPP’s words and the government’s attempt to silence the BPP exemplifies the whites’ need to remain superior and in control. Just as the BPP was willing to use any means necessary to achieve its goals, the government used any means necessary to prevent the unification of blacks and its supporters and the effectiveness of the BPP, reflecting the government’s higher concern for maintaining a compliant populace than for adherence to protecting the rights granted to all citizens. |