Will the Real Eldridge Cleaver Please Stand Up? (Pt. 3)

Is this Eldridge Cleaver (Aug. 31, 1935-May 1, 1998), the former minister of information of the Oakland, Calif.-based Black Panther Party?

Yes, it is. The man in Pt. 1 of this series is H. Rap Brown (Oct. 4, 1943- ; now Imam Jamil Abdulah Al-Amin), the former chairman of the militant Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), which advocated "black power," or black self-determination, for African Americans during the mid- and late-1960s.

Like most archival videos available on the Web, it was posted without any historical context. However, a little digging confirms that it was filmed at St. Stephen and the Incarnation Episcopal church, 1525 Newton St., N. W., Washington, D. C., on July 27, 1967.

Imam Al-Amin was speaking about the mostly African American uprising or rebellion that erupted at Detroit five days earlier, the most destructive in U. S. history before the Los Angeles rebellion of 1992.

The man in Pt. 2 is James Forman (Oct. 4, 1928-Jan. 10, 2005), the former executive secretary of SNCC.




I have not (yet) been able to contextualize the videos of Forman or Cleaver, but would add it here if and when I do.

As you could see, none of these men resemble one another, yet, to some people, African Americans, or at least least radical black leaders, apparently all look alike.




The Web, which is often the first resort of students and scholars alike, is polluted with such misidentifications, which spread like a mischievous virus to infect newspaper, magazine and journal articles; thesis and dissertations; radio and television programs; documentary films; educational resources, etc. -- all because the directors of most video and photo Web sites fail to hire persons, or at least engage consultants, who are educated or trained in history, and particularly the history of non-"white" peoples.

Think of this little gallery the next time that you're looking for a video or photo of some historical figure. "It ain't necessarily so," and is becoming increasingly LESS so in this Age of Mediocrity and Carelessness.

(Video courtesy eFootage.com)

Category:

News & Politics

Tags:

• SNCC

[brotherwise]

Paul,

I definitely agree that video footage can definitely be used to mislead, which is why one must always investigate truth independently and think critically for oneself. Especially in this age of overexposure, hyperreality and media distortion. However, being someone who does know who Eldridge Cleaver is, I was really looking forward to hearing what he had to say and would really appreciate being able to check out any more available footage on him before his return from exile in 1975.

[pauldarwinlee]

Dear brotherwise,

You could find several videos of the often profane Cleaver speaking and giving interviews during this period on other YouTube channels, including those of bavc, FootageWorld, JDinNYC01 and paulgallagher4.

I simply included a video of Cleaver to make a point about the carelessness and untrustworthiness of most video and photo Web sites because one in particular identified three different people as Cleaver.

I have the honor to remain

Brother-Lee yours,

Paul

[pauldarwinlee]

No, there is no audio to this clip. I posted it to make a point -- namely, that the Web is often a dangerous place for people, and particularly "black" people, to find their history. In this case, a video company posted clips of Jamil Abdullah Al-Amin (then known as H. Rap Brown), James Forman and Eldridge Cleaver, and identified each as the SAME person -- namely, Cleaver. My channel is designed to provide RELIABLE historical context for videos.  Why not look at the others?

Paul Lee

[Mwariama1]

Impressive footage of the rally in DC. From observation it certainly appears to be Malcolm X Park (located off 15th and Newton). I've never seen this footage and certainly appreciate its posting. I'll recommend it to others.

[pauldarwinlee]

Dear Bro. Mwariama,

Much thanx. However, my reference to a rally at DC was to Pt. 1, the video of Imam Jamil Abduallah Al-Amin, then still known as H. Rap Brown. I have not yet been able to identify where the video of Eldridge Cleaver was shot.

I have the honor to remain

Brother-Lee yours,

Paul

[brotherwise]

is there any audio to this clip?? when I click on it there is video footage of cleaver but no audio!!

[edgertor]

no sound?