Unforgettable Change: 1960s: Black Panther Party: A Black Power Alternative
This poster, with a black militant with a raised submachine gun against a “rising sun” background, is characteristic of the Emory Douglas’ work while he was the Minister of Culture for the Black Panther Party. The quote is from a 1905 speech by Soviet Union leader Josef Stalin. Douglas notes that the prominence of gun images can be explained by the social context at the time; the party’s 1966 Ten Point Program included the position that “We believe we can end police brutality in our black community by organizing black self-defense groups that are dedicated to defending our black community from racist police oppression...”