The Ballot before the Bullet: The Black Panther Party's Revolutionary Identity and the People's Campaign of 1973

Abstract

Historical analysis of the Black Panther Party (BPP) has primarily concentrated on the founding of the organization in 1966 till 1971 when two key leaders – Huey P. Newton and Eldridge Cleaver — disagreed about the use of self-defence as the organization’s sole revolutionary strategy. This moment, popularly known as the Split, marked the beginning of a new era of the Panthers, led by Newton, that pursued revolutionary change through mainstream electoral politics. As a result, the organization’s revolutionary identity and performance evolved during this period. However, this transition has been interpreted through a binary of reform vs. revolution associated with the Civil Rights Movement and Black Power Movement, reclassifying BPP as social democratic and reformist without examining the reasoning that fueled the use of elections as a practical revolutionary tool. This study argues that the People’s Campaign of 1973 was part of the Party’s long-term strategy to achieve a revolution and liberate oppressed people. Themes of gender, race, and class are examined throughout this thesis. Chapter One explores the internal and external influences that forced Newton to rethink the BPP’s strategy and how the reframed approach was received by Party members and the public. The trajectory of the election is examined in Chapter Two through analysis of newspaper and political campaign material to reveal how the People’s Campaign and candidates Elaine Brown and Bobby Seale were represented. The third chapter explores the daily contributions and dedication of Party members in the field to increase voter registration and raise political consciousness by connecting with low-income, Black, and minority people in Oakland, California. The thesis concludes that ideologically and practically the People’s Campaign of 1973 represented the evolution of the Black Panthers’ revolutionary identity and performance beyond self-defence.