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__Stokely Carmichael__

=__ Social Change Movement __=  Stokely Carmichael was a supporter of the Civil Rights Movement. He actively participated in many organizations including the SNCC and Black Panthers until he was kicked out. After isolating himself from the Civil Rights movement, Carmichael supported Pan-Africanism. Pan Africanism is a movement which tries to unify African Americans heritage into one big global community. =__ Purpose/Drive __= After watching a wave of sit-ins in the South, Carmichael was inspired by many brave and courageous blacks to take an active role in the Civil Rights Movement. During college, he was persuaded to join the movement. To start, Carmichael joined the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC). SNCC contributed to primarily sit-ins and freedom rides. Also he contributed to the Congress of Racial Equality in freedom rides. When Carmichael was in the south, he formed the Lowndes County Freedom Organization. This was an effort to bring together blacks to form a political party. The emblem was a black panther to signify the strength of blacks. The LCFO became known as the Black Panther Party later. It promoted the Black Power, which was coined by Carmichael himself. Black Power is a political slogan expressing political goals. Black Power goals ranged from racial oppression to the establishment of black institutions. Carmichael believed this concept would not only help with desegregation, but also with racism occurring throughout the country. The Black Panther Party received national, as well as international recognition. Eventually, the Panthers and Carmichael began to separate themselves. The Panthers believed white activists could help the movement, but Carmichael thought they could not unless they set up their own community. As a result, Carmichael was expelled from the party.

Stokely Carmichael was born in Trinidad and Tobago. When he was two years old, his family moved to the United States. He went to high school in New York City, and then went to college at Howard University in 1960. He eventually graduated and received a bachelor’s degree in philosophy. Afterward during college, he joined the SNCC and played a major role as he was chairman for a period of time. Carmichael frequently resisted laws as he was arrested a few amount of times. Carmichael was battling prostrate cancer for two years until he died in Guinea at the age of 57.
 * __ Background __**

Initially Carmichael favored non-violent tactics, but after seeing an African American can beat up furiously, he changed his thinking. He followed the philosophy of Malcolm X that African Americans had the right to defend themselves against their provoker by any means necessary. Also he argued that the only way to secure rights for blacks was to take over. Black Power would allow economic and political liberation.
 * __ Arguments __**

Bobby Seale was a member of the Black Panther Party, as was Carmichael. Malcolm X influenced Carmichael to the point where Carmichael followed Malcolm’s ideologies. Carmichael and Martin Luther King Jr. had the same views on the war in Vietnam, and they were both Civil Rights activists. ** Martin Luther King Jr. can also be considered a foe of Carmichael in terms of philosophy. King believed in nonviolent tactics, while Carmichael believed in armed violence to promote civil rights for blacks. Also the Black Panther Party was a foe of Carmichael. Although Stokely was in the party for quite some time, they had different views on allowing white activists to join. Carmichael was suspended from the party indefinitely for his views, which made them foes. **
 * __ Allies/Foes __**

Sources:

Kaufman, Michael T. "Stokely Carmichael, Rights Leader Who Coined 'Black Power,' Dies at 57." //InterChange.org front page//. 16 Nov. 1998. Web. 22 Dec. 2009. . "Stokely Carmichael (A.K.A. Kwame Ture)." //DISCOVERTHENETWORKS.ORG//. 22 Dec. 2009. .
 * "Stokely Carmichael - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia." //Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia//. 22 Dec. 2009. .