THE ORIGINAL BLACK PANTHERS (REAL AMERICAN WARRIORS)
The
761st Tank Battalion was an independent
tank battalion of the
United States Army during World War II. The 761st was made up primarily of African-American soldiers, who by federal law were not permitted to serve alongside white troops; the military did not officially desegregate until after World War II. They were known as the "Black Panthers" after their unit's distinctive insignia; their motto was "Come out fighting". The battalion received a
Presidential Unit Citation for its actions. In addition, a large number of individual members also received medals, including one
Medal of Honor, 11
Silver Stars and about 300
Purple Hearts.
[1] They have been called "one of the most effective tank battalions in World War II".
[1]
761st Tank Battalion
Active 1942–1946 (segregated unit)
1947–1955 (integrated unit)
Allegiance United States of America
Branch United States Army
Type Separate tank battalion
Nickname(s) Black Panthers
Motto(s) Come Out Fighting
Engagements
World War II
Decorations
Presidential Unit Citation
Commanders
Notable
commanders Lt. Col.
Paul L. Bates
THE BLACK PANTHER PARTY (REAL AMERICAN CITIZENS)
The Lowndes County Freedom Organization (LCFO), also known as the
Black Panther Party,
was started in 1965 under the direction of
Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) activist
Stokely Carmichael. In 1965, Lowndes County in
Alabama was 80% black but not a single black citizen was registered to vote. Carmichael arrived in the county to organize a voter registration project and from this came the LCFO. Party members adopted the black panther as their symbol for their independent political organization.
More than half of the African American population in Lowndes County lived below the poverty line. Moreover, white supremacists had a long history of extreme violence towards anyone who attempted to vote or otherwise challenge all-white rule. Lowndes County Freedom Organization members didn’t simply want to vote to place other white candidates in office. Instead they wanted to be able to vote for their own candidates.
THE COMIC HERO (REAL AMERICAN FICTION)
Black Panther is a fictional
superhero appearing in
American comic books published by
Marvel Comics. The character was created by writer-editor
Stan Lee and writer-artist
Jack Kirby, first appearing in
Fantastic Four #52 (
July 1966) in the
Silver Age of Comic Books.
THE COPYCAT BLACK PANTHER PARTY (COWARDLY TERRORISTS AND MURDERERS)
The imagery of the Black Panther became so powerful that Stokely Carmichael began to promote it as a symbol for the entire Black Power movement across America, but it wasn't until a pamphlet about voter registration in Alabama reached a young Huey Newton at the UC Berkeley campus that the name began to describe what we know today as the Black Panthers. Basically, he saw the logo, was impressed and inspired by what it stood for and what had been accomplished under its banner, and essentially adopted it for his and Bobby Seale's new group in Oakland.