African American civil rights campaigner and Black Panther
BILLY X JENINNGS
Speaks at Marxism 2013 conference
Saturday 30th March, 2pm
University of Melbourne, Student Union Building
TICKETS ARE SELLING FAST!
Read below about the interconnection between the American Black Panthers and the Aboriginal Black Power movement below:
Aboriginal ‘Black Power’ activists from the 1970s join American Black Panther Billy X Jennings at a Melbourne conference
A member of the one of the most controversial African American civil rights organisations, the Black Panthers, is coming to Australia for the Marxism 2013 conference. At this conference he will be reunited with radical ‘Black Power’ Aboriginal activists, Gary Foley (founding activist of the Aboriginal Tent Embassy) and Bruce McGuinness from the 1970s.
Billy X Jennings is the first Black Panther to visit Australia in twenty years and will be speaking on his experiences in the Party from the 1970s onwards. Jennings was one of the Party’s early members and travelled to Australia and New Zealand to help discuss through issues colonialism and racism in these societies.
The Black Panthers had a significant impact on the movement for self determination and Aboriginal rights here in Australia. Gary Foley said of the impact of the Panthers in a recent article.
“The young Kooris of Redfern saw striking similarities in the American experience and their own communities. They began to adopt and adapt the strategies and tactics they were reading and hearing about in America. Thus when Redfern activists pondered the problem of police harassment in their own community, they were drawn to consider methods adopted by a group called the Black Panther Party of America, operating in the San Francisco suburb of Oakland, California.”
The Marxism 2013 conference will be the first time these three activists have met since the 1970s.
Jennings is the Party’s current archivist and will be touring with a display of original newspapers, photos and mementos. Bruce McGuinness will be providing photos and articles from the period of ‘Black Power’ in Australia.
Jennings is the Party’s current archivist and will be touring with a display of original newspapers, photos and mementos. Bruce McGuinness will be providing photos and articles from the period of ‘Black Power’ in Australia.
Billy X Jennings will be available for interviews from Saturday 23rd March till Thursday 28th March.
Events:
Gary Foley will be speaking at the conference on Friday March 29th at 7pm. http://www.marxismconference.org
Billy X Jennings will be speaking at the conference on Saturday March 30th at 2pm. http://www.marxismconference.org