How the Black Panthers Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

How the Black Panthers - Essay Example The street gangs of the 1960’s were the result of the frustration of black youngsters against whites, who did not welcome them in their neighborhoods. The BPP called upon the black youth to rise in self defense and proclaimed the U.S. government as its enemy. Gangs have been a part of the culture of America ever since the 1800’s but the street gang subculture is constantly evolving, so as to conform to prevailing conditions. The leaders of one of these small street gangs, the Slausons, founded the Los Angeles arm of the Black Panther Party (BPP). Soon the rowdy gang culture was being shaped into an overtly political agenda. In 1969, Carter and Huggins, the leaders of the Los Angeles BPP were killed in a gun battle on the UCLA campus during a face-off with members of the United Slaves, a rival gang. These murders triggered a massive FBI retaliation, which led to the disbanding of the BPP. With the BPP no longer in existence, black youth scoured for newer gangs, and at this point Raymond Washington rallied them together under the banner, Baby Avenues or Baby Cribs. With time, the Cribs evolved into Crips in the local vernacular. Washington recruited a large number of members into his gang and in 1971, formed the Westside Crips by me rging his rival Tookie’s gang with his own. The name Crips stands for â€Å"Continuous Revolution in Progress† and this gang had the fearlessness of the Panthers, combined with their rebellious attitude (Davis, Mike; City of Quartz, PP.293-300). Members of Crips gang identify themselves by wearing blue bandanas. When the Crips began to expand, it led to conflicts with other gangs and during a summer conflict in 1972, between the Crips and Pirus gang, the Crips won. The Pirus and other small gangs of the area came together to form a separate organization called the Bloods, and began to sport red bandanas. Just like the BPP, these gangs were formed to protect black people