Protests Outside the Courthouse
Clip: Episode 1 | 2m 55sVideo has Closed Captions
Massive street protests outside of the courthouse where Huey P. Newton was on trial for murder.
Former Black Panther Kathleen Cleaver describes the massive protests and clashes with police outside of the Alameda County courthouse where Black Panther co-founder Huey P. Newton was on trial for the murder of a white policeman that Newton and his defense team claimed was in self-defense.
Protests Outside the Courthouse
Clip: Episode 1 | 2m 55sVideo has Closed Captions
Former Black Panther Kathleen Cleaver describes the massive protests and clashes with police outside of the Alameda County courthouse where Black Panther co-founder Huey P. Newton was on trial for the murder of a white policeman that Newton and his defense team claimed was in self-defense.
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Learn Moreabout PBS online sponsorship(tense music) - The Black community was sure, there's no question, he's done f and my job was to make sure the attention increased to the p it would be politically very, very difficult for Huey Newton to get the death (tense music) (sirens beeping) The police were very powerful, but they were taken aback by the energy of these demonstra (tense music) (crowd shouting) The police would come out, make several arrests, and disperse the crowd.
If we were dispersed, we eventually came back and started chanting again, The revolution has come.
Off the pigs!
It's time to pick up the gun.
Off the pigs!
The revolution has come.
Off the pigs!
- [Cleaver] And they saw that they couldn't stop us.
Free Huey now or else!
Free Huey now or else!
- In the case of Huey Newton, the public was organized and mob and it wasn't just the African-American community.
It was the broader community that had been informed and brought in at an organizatio - [Crowd] Free Huey now or else!
Free Huey now or else!
- We had 5,000 people around the courthouse.
Every race you can imagine.
We had Asians.
We had mulattos.
We had Black people.
We had whit There was so much international The energy was phenomenal.
(crowd cheering) (somber music) - My main concern was what was gonna happen in Oakland when he was convicted.
I had no doubt that he was gonna convicted of first-degree murder and he was gonna face execution.
What were the Black Panthers gon How far were they gonna take the when he was convicted?
(foreboding music) (sirens wailing) - We had riots in Detroit, we had riots in Watts, and always riots in places where there were Blacks.
Now we're in Oakland with the Black Panthers and they're armed.
(foreboding music) (somber music) - All of the social turmoil goin at the same time this case was coming to trial had to have some effect on the trial itself.
(somber music) - And this was a time of riot, and Oakland hadn't had a riot.
At any time, something like that could explode and happen.
Be careful.
Don't get us all kil Don't push us off into the ocean
From Pianist to Black Power Revolutionary
Video has Closed Captions
The evolution of Huey P. Newton from classical pianist to black-power revolutionary. (2m 54s)
Video has Closed Captions
The jury foreman of the 1968 Huey P. Newton murder trial describes the jury’s tense deliberations. (2m 36s)
Video has Closed Captions
A groundbreaking, history making jury of mostly women and minorities is selected for the trial. (2m 33s)
Video has Closed Captions
The untold story behind the murder trial of Black Panthers leader Huey Newton. (30s)
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