The Portland Black Panthers : empowering Albina and remaking a city Cover Image

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The Portland Black Panthers : empowering Albina and remaking a city / Lucas N.N. Burke and Judson L. Jeffries.

Burke, Lucas N. N., (author.). Jeffries, J. L. (Judson L.), 1965- (author.).

Summary:

Portland, though widely regarded as a liberal bastion, also has struggled historically with ethnic diversity; indeed, the 2010 census found it to be "Americas whitest major city." In early recognition of such disparate realities, a group of African American activists in the 1960s formed a local branch of the Black Panthers in the city's Albina District to rally their community and be heard by city leaders. And as Lucas Burke and Judson Jeffries reveal, the Portland branch was quite different from the more famous--and infamous--Oakland headquarters. Instead of parading through the streets wearing black berets and ammunition belts, Portland's Panthers were more concerned with opening a health clinic and starting free breakfast programs for neighborhood kids. Though the group had been squeezed out of local politics by the early 1980s, its legacy lives on through the various activist groups in Portland that are still fighting many of the same battles.

Record details

ISBN: 9780295995168
ISBN: 0295995165
Physical Description: 283 pages, 16 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations, maps, facsimiles ; 24 cm.
Edition: 1st edition.
Publisher: Seattle : University of Washington Press, [2016]

Content descriptions

General Note:	"V Ethel Willis White Books."
Bibliography, etc. Note:	Includes bibliographical references and index.
Formatted Contents Note:	The making and remaking of Albina -- Claiming Albina in the era of model cities and the national committee to combat fascism -- Serving Albina and becoming Panthers under the watchful eye of the Portland Police Bureau -- The Emanuel Hospital expansion, the James Family saga, and Portland's vision of a new urbanism -- Winning the war? Regime change, the triumph of community politics, and the emergence of Black leadership in Portland -- Life after the party: the Portland Black Panthers and their legacy.