#Black Freedom Fighters

[reasoningdaily]

Negroes with Guns - Robert F. Williams

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Negroes with Guns is a 1962 book by civil rights activist Robert F. Williams. Timothy B. Tyson said, Negroes with Guns was "the single most important intellectual influence on Huey P. Newton, the founder of the Black Panther Party".

The book is used in college courses and is discussed in debates. Negroes with Guns was Williams' experience throughout the Civil Rights Movement of Monroe, North Carolina.

Because black rights were constantly violated, the self-defense policy was born, with Williams saying there was a need to "meet violence with violence." However, Williams claimed that black militants were not promoting violence, but were combating it, believing in self-defense and not aggression.

NEGROES WITH GUNS: Rob Williams and Black Power tells the dramatic story of the often-forgotten civil rights leader who urged African Americans to arm themselves against violent racists. In doing so, Williams not only challenged the Klan-dominated establishment of his hometown of Monroe, North Carolina, he alienated the mainstream Civil Rights Movement, which advocated peaceful resistance.

For Williams and other African Americans who had witnessed countless acts of brutality against their communities, armed self-defense was a practical matter of survival, particularly in the violent, racist heart of the Deep South.

As the leader of the Monroe chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), Williams led protests against the illegal segregation of Monroe’s public swimming pool. He also drew international attention to the harsh realities of life in the Jim Crow South.

All the while, Williams and other protestors met the constant threat of violence and death with their guns close at hand. In August 1961, the Freedom Riders, civil rights activists trained by Martin Luther King, Jr. to lead non-violent resistance, came to Monroe to demonstrate the superiority of passive resistance. An angry mob turned on the protestors and, by the end of the day, the Freedom Riders had been bloodied, beaten and jailed, and Rob Williams was on the run from the FBI.

Backed by a jazz score by Terence Blanchard (Barbershop and the films of Spike Lee), NEGROES WITH GUNS uses interviews, rare archival footage and searing photographs to chronicle Williams’ rise to notoriety, his eight-year exile in Cuba and Mao Zedong’s China and his much-publicized return home in 1969. Voices include historians, members of Williams’ Black Guard—armed men committed to the protection of Monroe’s black community—and Williams’ widow, Mabel. For eight years, Williams and his family lived in exile, first in Cuba and then in China.

In Havana, Williams began to broadcast a 50,000-watt radio program called "Radio Free Dixie." Selected recordings are featured in NEGROES WITH GUNS. The radio show fused cutting-edge music with news of the black freedom movement and Williams’ editorials, which, among other things, urged blacks not to fight in Vietnam.

In exile from 1961 to 1969, at the height of the American Civil Rights Movement, Rob Williams and his accomplishments have been largely erased from the public consciousness. According to the filmmakers, NEGROES WITH GUNS helps to “restore Rob and Mabel Williams to their rightful place as important civil rights figures who defied the white power structure without the protection of large numbers or the attention of television cameras.”

click the title link to Download for FREE from The BLACK TRUEBRARY

[onlylonelylatino]

Blue Beetle and the All-Star Squadron & Freedom Fighters by Jerry Ordway

[3rdeyeblaque]

November 7th marks the 182nd anniversary of The Creole Ship Slave Revolt ✊🏾

The Creole was a slave ship owned by the Johnson-Eperson Co. that set sail in November 1841 carrying 135 enslaved Afrikans & shipments of tobacco from Richmond, VA to New Orleans, LA. Among them was a brotha given the name, Madison Washington - a runaway slave from Canada who was captured in VA while searching for his wife - and his wife, given the name, Susan.

On Nov 7th, Washington along with 18 other males made their move to overthrow the ship. They overpowered the crew, killing one of the slavers in the process. The ship’s wounded captain, family, & crew survived the battle. The battle was a success though not without its cost; one of the rebels was mortally wounded and succumbed to his injury. Desperate to save his own neck, the overseer on board swore he'd navigate the ship for them.

First, the rebels demanded they set sail for Liberia, Afrika; but the long distance and low food/water supplies ixneyed that possibility. One of the rebels, a brotha given the name, Ben Blacksmen, asserted that they should aim for the British controlled islands in the West Indies; word had spread of previous rebels gaining their freedom there after overtaking American slave ships. He hoped the same fortune would befall them.

They arrived in Nassau, Bahamas 2 days later. There, they were met by the harbor pilot and his men - a crew of all local Black Bahamians. The harbor pilot declared them free once ashore. Upon discovering that the Creole's captain was also mortally wounded, the American consul was notified of the revolt and demanded the arrest of Washington & all 18 rebels implicated in his death under charges of Mutany. His wife, Susan, and the other Afrikan survivors were given leave to live freely within the British boundary of the West Indies.

Some stayed in the Bahamas to start a new life, others sailed for Jamaica to do the same. Only 5 survivors chose to remain aboard the Creole set sail for New Orleans, LA to return to American Slavery ; 3 women, 1 boy, and 1 girl. It wasn't until April 16th of the next year that Washington and the other 18 rebels were freed and joined their companions on West Indian soil as freefolk.

Moreover, for their courage, unity, & nerve, 128 enslaved Afrikan Peoples gained their freedom from this day, making the Creole Slave Revolt THE most successful revolt in U.S. history.

We pour libations of water, speak their names, & offer prayers toward their elevation - especially those lost & returned to bondage.

[cid5]

circa 1959: A group photo of Cuban citizen militia displaying weapons captured from dictator Fulgencio Batista's army in Fidel Castro's '26 of July Movement,' Cuba. The men wear army fatigues, posing around a machine gun.

[nitpickrider]

That's...that's just real cool. I don't know how people feel about the Golem being a nazi stomping kaiju, other people will have opinion on that. But that's such a neat idea with all of them in general. Freedom Fighters 12

[dcdreamblog]

Is it true that the reason Uncle Sam and several other WWII-era superheroes disappeared even before the whole McCarthy-HUAC debacle because they went to an alternate universe where the Axis won in order to continue the fight against Fascism?

The one hand, it sounds kinda crazy, even for superheroes, but in the other it sounds in-character for Uncle Sam.

Yep. I mean like you said its fucking ludicrous, even for the kind of lives that these heroes lead but its just true in this case. The Multiverse is a really hard idea to wrap your head around outside science fiction but sometimes it will come roaring in whether we like it or not.

(Propaganda poster of the Freedom Fighters produced in 1946)

The Freedom Fighters were already a very insular and embattled part of the Squadron. Their specific mandate was to support resistance movements against fascism all over the world along the periphery of Axis territory where Uncle Sam's considerable influence could stave off the Spear of Destiny while they worked in secret. Their main ports of call for most of the war were in Burma, the Phillipines, China and the southern Mediterranean.

Because of the secretive and intensive nature of their work, they became a very opaque bubble within the Squadron, tightly bonded to one another with their locations and activities often unknown even to the Squadron at large for weeks or even months.

Soon after the war (as in, ON V-J Day) they became aware of the alternative universe you mentioned where the Axis managed to not only win the war but hold dominion over most, if not all, of the world.

During the entire period between the end of the war and the early days of the Justice League they were embattled as the main resistance in that universe, eventually turning the tide and overthrowing Nazi rule with the JLA's help, where they returned to our world. (Not the Firebrand on their team was the Earth X version of original Firebrand Rod Reilly, who died during the Pearl Harbor attacks on our world and did not survive the Fighters' final battle on Earth X)

I DO want to talk about Uncle Sam at some point though because as you implied he is a fascinating figure. (I've actually met him. Like, legit spoken to him, he comes into the museum like...once or twice a month. I think he knows my name)

[chernobog13]

SMASH COMICS #14 (September, 1940). Cover by Gill Fox.

This issue presented the origin and first appearance of The Ray, one of Quality Comics' powerhouse superheroes.

The Ray first appears, albeit without pants. He would have those in the next issue, but then mysteriously be missing his distinct head fin. Art by Lou Fine, who signed his work on The Ray "E. Lectron."

The Ray would later become more well known as a member of the Freedom Fighters in Justice League of America (vol. 1) #107 (October, 1973), almost two decades after DC Comics had acquired all of Quality's characters when that company went out of business in 1956.

[c0ngatime]

The Knight of Camelot Castle, Sir Bedivere!

[splooosh]

“Awesome!”

Jerry Ordway - Rick Hoberg

[comic-art-showcase]

Freedom Fighters by Ramona Fradon(R.I.P.)

[onlylonelylatino]

Plastic Man and the Freedom Fighters by Brian Murray

[3rdeyeblaque]

Today we venerate Elevated Ancestor El-Hajj Malik El-Shabaz aka Brother Malcolm "X" Little on his 98th birthday 🎉

A minister, scholar, orator, & legendary Freedom Fighter- who infamously bore the name "X" to signify our self-liberation from the shackles of a European legacy forced upon us during Slavery -, we elevate Brother Malcolm as one of THE most prolific voices of freedom, justice, self-determination, & Pan-Afrikan unity in modern history.

Born into a legacy of freedom fighters, Brother Malcolm was raised on the cusp between Black Nationalism unity & White Supremacist terror. His father was a member of Marcus Garvey’s Universal Negro Improvement Association (UNIA), in which he served as an orator publicly advocating for Black liberation before his murder.

Though a gifted student, Malcolm dropped out of school when a teacher ridiculed his aspirations to become a lawyer. He later drifted into a life of hustling on the streets of Harlem. He cleverly avoided the draft in WWII by making the outrageous declaration that he'd organize Black soldiers to attack their White counterparts which classified him as "mentally unfit to serve". After his burglary arrest in Boston, Malcolm faced 10 years in prison. Here, he found Islam via the NOI.

Upon his parole release, Malcolm took the name "X" as he began to serve in the NOI as a speaker, organizer, and minister. He quickly grew in his prominence & drew national attention after an expose on the NOI was aired on CBS. Both, Black & White Americans, saw the stark contrast in his/NOI views from that of other Black religious leaders/organizations of the time. Thus planting the first seeds of warped perception & fear.

Meanwhile, Brother Malcolm's personal views & interests slowly began to split from the leaders of the organization he'd come to love. Malcolm grew increasingly frustrated with the NOI's bureaucracy & outright refusal to join the Civil Rights Movement. His forbidden response to the assassination of JFK earned him a 90 suspension from the NOI; at which time he announced his departure from the organization.

In March 1964, he founded the Muslim Mosque, Inc. Three months later, he founded a political group called, the Organization of Afro-American Unity (OAAU). Malcolm firmly placed Black Revolution in a global context of an anti-imperialist struggle here, in Afrika, Latin America, & Asia. This is what set him & his work further apart from any Black leader & organization in the U.S. at the time. And this is what sparked the breadth of his influence & mapped out the future of his work.

Brother Malcolm toured North & East Afrika as well as the Middle East Region in the late Spring of 1964. He met with heads of state from several countries (i.e.: Kenya, Tanzania, Egypt, Ghana, Nigeria) before making his hajj to Mecca, Saudi Arabia. Here, he added "El-Hajj" to his Muslim name, "Malik El-Shabazz". This journey into the Motherland & Self brought Malcolm to the realization that his revolutionary vision/influence superceded any colour line.

Once he returned to the U.S, he infamously declared Pan-African unity amid struggle for freedom “by any means necessary.” This marked a turning point in Malcolm's life & revolutionary fight against White Supremacy on a global scale. He spent 6, albeit unsuccessful, months in Afrika petitioning the U.N. to investigate the Human Rights violations of Black Americans by the U.S. Government. From then on, threats to his safety and that of his family & the OUAA mounted. Still, he continued the fight until his assassination that was ultimately orchestrated & carried out by the CIA.

"If you’re not ready to die for it, put the word ‘freedom’ out of your vocabulary" - Malcolm X

Today, Brother Malcolm rests alongside his wife at the Ferncliff Cemetery in upstate NY.

We pour libations & give him💐 today as we celebrate him for his incomparable leadership, love, commitment, & sacrifice for the socioeconomic & sociopolitical freedom of our people.

Offering suggestions: libations of water, read/share his work, & prayers from the Quran

Note: offering suggestions are just that & strictly for veneration purposes only. Never attempt to conjure up any spirit or entity without proper divination/Mediumship counsel.

[afrotumble]

“Let us be precise: for us, African revolution means the transformation of our present life in the direction of progress. The prerequisite for this is the elimination of foreign economic domination, on which every other type of domination is dependent.”

Amilcar Cabral

[nitpickrider]

Of...um...of all the methods to neutralize someone with Plas' powers. That is certainly a one. Freedom Fighters 7

[vsthepomegranate]

Leila Khaled (1969)

By Eddie Adams

[docgold13]

Do you have any thoughts on Phantom Lady and Black Condor, of Freedom Fighters fame?

By far my favorite iteration of the Freedom Fighters was 'Uncle Sam and the Freedom Fighters' by Gray, Palmiotti and Acúna. And it so happens that Phantom Lady and Black Condor were my favorite characters in that book... especially the John Trujillo version of Black Condor (he's a super fun and interesting character).

Phantom Lady is fun too. Her costume is a bit much (imagine it takes a lot of spirit glue to keep her boobs from falling out of that get-up). Still, her powers are very cool and it was fun that she purposefully dressed in a provocative fashion because it distracted her adversaries and gave her an advantage.

If I recall correctly, there was an animated about the Freedom Fighters. I haven't seen it, but would definitely be down for checking it out. Anyone know if it's a good watch?