Revolution in Our Time: The Black Panther Party’s Promise to the People

The Black Panther Party is often shrouded in distorted rumors and images. Kekla Magoon sheds a light on a typically misunderstood movement with REVOLUTION IN OUR TIME. Highlighting key figures and facts, clarifying myths, and tying the Black Panther Party into context of both the past and how it has led to present day movements, Magoon does an incredible job creating an engaging and compelling history.

There are a plethora of incredible aspects to REVOLUTION IN OUR TIME, but my favorite is how Magoon places the Black Panthers in time. In typical history textbooks, there is a particular narrative that flows from one decade to the next and only focuses on particular events. For the 60s and 70s, most books explain Dr. King’s movement and, if it mentions the Black Panthers at all, it quickly brushes over their work. Magoon not only gives up close accounts of the Black Panther Party but goes all the way back to the prior century to show how events led to the 1960s and 70s. Magoon then extends the timeline further by explaining what happened after the Black Panther Party ended and brings it to present day relevance.

I also enjoyed the dispelling of myths. The Black Panthers were vilified by the FBI, the police, and many other powerful groups that sought to stop them from uplifting Black people, and these groups actively promoted a racist interpretation of the party that got members beaten, jailed, and killed. The Black Panthers, like any other party, were not perfect and grappled with their own infighting and debates, but they also did great works and created impactful programs in their communities. Magoon pulls from both primary and secondary sources and always keeps information grounded in fact.

REVOLUTION IN OUR TIME is a must have for any YA nonfiction shelf.

I've been looking forward to this nonfiction book since at least 2009, when The Rock and the River came out, and Fire in the Streets only made me want it more. I've helped students with National History Day projects about the Black Panthers, and when I say that this is sorely needed, believe me. There isn't even an adult book that covers this organization as comprehensively and objectively as Revolution in Our Time does. The author has been working on this since at least 2012, and the dedication to research clearly shows.

The Black Panther movement was a turbulent organization in a turbulent time, but it's important to know a lot of Black history in order to fully understand the circumstances which led up to the 1960s. Events going back to the founding of the US to the Civil War to Separate But Equal to Northern Migration and World War II are succinctly explained, but the brevity does not lessen the impact. When even the Civil Rights movement of the 1950s and 60s failed to keep Black people from suffering from systemic racism, the Black Panthers felt that a new method of protest needed to be mounted. Since nonviolent protests were having little impact, they felt a need for an aggressive alternative.

As Magoon says in Chapter 5 (of the ARC), "In a vacuum, it is easy to default to saying, "Violence is never the answer," and thus addresses the most difficult issues of the Black Panthers. The country, still dealing with the consequences of WWII and Korea and now heavily involved in Vietnam and protests against it, and also dealing with the Cold War and Hoover's horribly misguided attempts to deal with the threat of Communism, found it difficult to deal with Black citizens armed with legal weapons embracing Leninistic philosophies. It was an uncomfortable time, but this discomfort was crucial to seeing change made. The descriptions of why and how Panther leadership determined their mission and processes against this historical background are helpful in understanding why these extreme measures were taken.

I have always been intrigued by the amount of social improvement programs that the Panthers ran. Some of these are discussed in Williams-Garcia's 2010 One Crazy Summer, and all are discussed here. Education, both for children and for adults (I love that there was a book list in the weekly newspaper!), was very important, but there was a strong understanding that people cannot learn on empty stomachs. Free food programs were implemented on community levels, and these expanded to include clothing, shoes, and other programs for issues that were essential for survival. Since the median age of Panthers was 19, this was a movement clearly driven and forwarded by the young, so they were not forgotten.

There were strict rules, and very clear mission statements for the organization, as well as a sort of uniform (the classic beret, black jacket, and light blue shirt), and these, along with the sense of purpose, helped engender strong feelings of community. They were also helpful when members were frequently arrested on trumped up charges, especially where weapons were concerned.

There were some problems. Many of the leaders ran into trouble with the law, often being jailed, or were killed. These occurrences aren't downplayed, but are framed in contexts that help make sense of the impossible circumstances the Panthers found themselves fighting against. It's easy to think that those who live by guns, die by guns, but Magoon clearly describes the precipitating events that drove these actions and shows how necessary they were.