#Panthers in Kashbah

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“Culture starts with the people as creators of themselves and transformers of their environment. Culture, in its widest and most complete sense, enables men to give shape to their lives. It is not freely received but is built up by the people. It is the vision of man and of the world and is thus systems of thought, philosophies, sciences, beliefs, arts and languages. Culture is essentially dynamic: in other words it is both rooted in the people and orientated towards the future.”

Pan-African Cultural Manifesto, Organization Of African Unity: First All African Cultural Festival, Algiers, July/August 1969

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“The aim of our culture is not to lull our friends with fairy stories, nor to boast of our art or civilization—i.e. our knowledge of human sciences. It has a more important part to play, namely to awaken in the African a sentiment of striving for the national liberation of the continent.”

Pierre Nze, African Culture: Algiers Symposium ACAS, 1969

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“Eldridge [Cleavers] appeared at a conference with the leaders of the Al Fatah movement, Yassar Arafat, and out of Eldridge's speech came some very important statements that give clarity to our position in relation to the Israeli-Palestinian questions. Of course, the BPP support the Palestinian people in their just struggle for self-determination. We take a revolutionary position in solidarity with the Arab people against Zionist expansionism. We recognize our role in this revolution and we’re part of the link in the chain of world-wide revolution and it’s our duty to spell out the reactionaries from the revolutionaries. We want to make it very dear that we support all those who are actively engaged in the struggle against U.S. imperialism and Zionism, which means to us racial supremacy.”

David Hillard, The Black Panther, Black Community News Service, February 17, 1970 

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“From July 21st to August 21st the city of Algers was the swingingest city in the entire world. Pan-African Power was the driving force. The American moon bit was hardly noticed. The Algerian newspapers headlined the festival and not the moon landing. Even the young Europeans who attended the festival didn't rant or rave about the moon thing.”

Ted Joans, The African Pow Wow, Journal for African Poetry, 13, 1969

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“Well, first of all, the Black Panther Party was invited to Algiers to represent the oppressed people of Afro-America and that our interest was to show through our art the oppression and to show and to create some means for communication on an international level. It was very serviceable in that respect. That the Black Panther Party was offered a center there. We had the only center there and it's just a matter of fact that there's been a coup against Roy Wilkins and James Farmer, you know, and that we're the recognized government of black people in America. And that we went there to express unity with the rest of the African people. So it's just that clear.”

David Hillard, “Press Conference: Chief of Staff's Return From Algiers”, The Black Panther, Black Community News Service, August, 1969 

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“Seeing many of the people from Pan Africa, and their participating together in Algeria, in this 1st Pan African Cultural Festival, in a revolutionary situation, will hearten other people in other countries, other people of African origin, in their revolutionary struggle. And so, Pan Africanism in this context right now has a very positive and a vital and a real type of meaning, because it’s being displayed in the streets of Algeria that we’re walking through, on this very evening.”

Ed Bullins, Black Theater, Vol 19,1969