In the 1960’s-1970’s, violence increasingly became an important factor in the Student movement for liberation in West Germany. Different levels of oppression were applied to various countries around the world, including Vietnam which was oppressed by the U.S. Student activists shadowed the different movements, and slowly incorporated the various methods into their own movement in West Germany. Indeed, Student activists fought for their liberation through a combination of international methods, however, the fuel for their violent actions mainly came from the Black Power Movement in the U.S which was motivated by Frantz Fanon’s ideas on decolonization. During the 1960s-70s, West German activists began to view that the elite higher class exploitation of the youth who went against societal norms in West Germany was very similar to the discrimination towards the Black population of America due to their skin color. Because of the newfound similarities, the two groups decided to exchange ideas on gaining liberation. The student activists and the African-Americans involved in the movement engaged in personal exchanges by traveling to each other’s countries and observing the corruption on their own, while studying tactics of fighting back. Indeed, Rudi Deutschke, the face of the SDS himself, made a trip to America and visited the slums of New York and Chicago to witness accounts of oppression with his own eyes. Through their observation of the Black Power Movement in America, as well as their interactions with members of the movement, many West German activists (SDS) increasingly supported the idea that a violent approach was the only way to seek liberation. The Black Power movement also motivated Left Wing terrorists, such as Bommi Baum...
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...y too followed Frantz Fanon’s ideals on decolonization, and in doing so sought liberation themselves.
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During the 1960’s, there was a rising tide of protests that were taking place. College students began to stand up for their rights and protest for a stronger voice in society. The United States was going through a tough period marked by the Cold War against communism and also the war in Vietnam. From Truman to Nixon the United States government involved the country more and more in Vietnam. Nixon announced a new policy in 1968 called Vietnamization. (Foner, 4th edition, pg.1028) This policy would bring American troops back home, but it neither limited the war nor ended the antiwar movements.
Freedom Rides, Vietnam, and Social activism among the youths of America have left the 60’s with a very profound effect on our society. Without question, the decade of the 1960’s was one of the most controversial in American History. Throughout this period of social unrest, anti-war attitudes were gaining prevalence in a peace-loving subculture, and individuals began to question certain aspects of governmental policy and authority. This was the decade of peace and war, optimism and despair, cultural turbulence and frustration.
The Movements of the New Left by Van Gosse documents the events that shaped American’s lives during the 1960s and 1970s. In these 45 documents, Gosse touches on topics of race, antiwar, gay rights and nonviolent demonstrations. The Civil Rights Movement and the Feminist Movement both shared the ideas of equal rights for everyone. Both movements relate to mainstream liberalism, share similar goals or differences, evolved in the 1970s, and still have an impact on American’s to this day.
...War and the Civil Rights Movements in order to illustrate how the 1960s was a time of “tumult and change.” To Anderson, it is these events, which sparked the demand for recognition of social and economic fairness. He makes prominent the idea that the 1960s served as the origin of activism and the birth of the civil rights movement, forever changing ideals that embody America. The book overall is comprehensive and a definite attention grabber. It shows how the decade had the effect of drastically transforming life in America and challenging the unequal status quo that has characterized most of the nation's history. Despite the violence and conflict that was provoked by these changes, the activism and the liberation movements that took place have left a permanent imprint upon the country.
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Founded on October 15th 1966 in Oakland, California, the Black Panther Party for Self Defense was an organization opposed to police brutality against the black community. The Party’s political origins were in Maoism, Marxism, and the radical militant ideals of Malcolm X and Che Guevara. From the doctrines of Maoism they saw the role of their Party as the frontline of the revolution and worked to establish a unified alliance, while from Marxism they addressed the capitalist economic system, and exemplified the need for all workers to forcefully take over means of production (Baggins, Brian). Mao was important to the Black Panthers because of his different stance on Marxism-Leninism when applied to Chinese peasants. The founders of the Black Panther Party, Huey P. Newton and Bobby Seale saw links between the Chinese peasants and the oppression of blacks in America and used Mao’s “little red book” as a guideline for social revolution (Baggins, Brian).
Students at the University of Missouri, specifically the Concerned Student 1950 activist group, began a resistance movement to remove the university’s president, Tim Wolfe. The university saw a rise in the number of racist incidents, but the president did not take any action. Some of the racist incidents include “a swastika, drawn in excrement” and the “screaming of racial insults, including the ‘N-word” at the head of the Missouri Students Association (“Missouri”). The students began protesting by standing in front of the president’s car at a parade, but when that didn’t garner a response they began to resist in more extreme methods. Jonathan Butler, a graduate student at the University of Missouri, went on a hunger strike, refusing to eat until the president, who took little action against the racist incidents, chose to resign. Hunger strikes, much like abortions, are a form of resistance that can be categorized by inward violence. After a week without food, Tim Wolfe resigned and Butler was able to end his hunger strike (Lowery). The students at Missouri were able to use resistance successfully to create a change in their university’s leadership. Not only did they succeed in changing the leadership, but they gained the attention of the entire nation. Their actions are causing citizens all around the country to think about existing
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“We knew, as a revolutionary vanguard, repression would be the reaction of our oppressors, but we recognized that the task of the revolutionist is difficult and his life is short. We were prepared then, as we are now, to give our all in the interest of oppressed people” (Baggins). Radical and provocative, the 60’s was an era of complete political and social upheaval. Although the Civil Rights Act of 1964 had banned the discrimination of people based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin, the execution of this act were initially proven weak. Unlike other national organizations or campaigns against the U.S. government, the Black Panther Party for Self-Defense remains the only organization to take a militant stance, frequently seen campaigning armed and proudly wielding weapons. Huey P. Newton and Bobby Seale, the founders of the Black Panthers, believed that the peaceful and non-violent campaign of Martin Luther King had failed, and had very little faith in the implementation of the “traditional” civil rights movement. Newton casually addresses his violent conducts, stating, “And people say, well Huey you're so violent. Why are you so violent Huey? …And I say, well hey, existence is violent; I exist, therefore I am violent in that way”(PBS).
Bloom, Joshua and Waldo E. Martin. Black Against Empire: the history and politics of the Black Panther Party. Berkley: University of California Press, 2013.
The methods that the Panthers employed to secure Black liberation was quite feasible. This group of activists created a collective subjectivity. Thus in order to obtain all that they sought to achieve, the creation of a “revolutionary culture” was crucial to the panthers’ efforts to influence Black Americans’ consciousness, which aimed to defy the political and social powers of the United States (Rhodes, 2007, p. 92). Through the process of communication, and the use of guns as a means of intimidation, the Panthers were able to disseminate their beliefs and rituals towards a global audience. These messages relied heavily on the proliferation and buttressing of Black culture.
World War II was a grave event in the twentieth century that affected millions. Two main concepts World War II is remembered for are the concentration camps and the marches. These marches and camps were deadly to many yet powerful to others. However, to most citizens near camps or marches, they were insignificant and often ignored. In The Book Thief, author Markus Zusak introduces marches and camps similar to Dachau to demonstrate how citizens of nearby communities were oblivious to the suffering in those camps during the Holocaust.
The role of violence in the fight against injustice is a tricky one. If an oppressor is willing to use violence to maintain control should not the oppressed use violence to achieve liberation? Franz Fanon would argue that the pent up anger and frustration must be released in violent action to tear down the oppressor’s regime. However, there is a better way and that is through non-violence and understanding that Martin Luther King, Jr. champions. Only through creating tension around injustice via non-violent direct action can the conversation begin around mutual understanding and justice. It is this justice achieved through non-violent means that will last as violent action is ultimately unjust in nature.