On the Black Panther Party 2 Regarding “41st and Central: The Untold Story of the L A Black Panther Party”-On Snitches (JAI: The below is an adaptation of a letter just sent to my oldest comrade, the man who brought me into the BSU in 1967.) Watched “41st and Central” ( https://www.google.com/search?client=firefox-b-1-d&q=41st+and+central+documentary ) via the Pan African Film Festival ( https://www.paff.org/films/41st-and-central/ ) again last night. Really to get something through a thick skull I have to see (or read) things twice even 3 times. One of the people profiled in the documentary was Wesley Kabaila whom I knew as Sikivu when we were at LACC and in the BSU. He was with the US Organization ( https://www.google.com/search?safe=active&client=firefox-b-1-d&sxsrf=ALeKk01G01M0d5u_1MAMkmUWzh47KaInTg%3A1614366370442&ei=okY5YJizGqqx0PEPuYSqqAU&q=us+organization&oq=US+Org&gs_lcp=Cgdnd3Mtd2l6EAEYADIECCMQJzICCAAyAggAMgIIADICCAAyAggAMgIIADICCAAyAggAMgIIADoHCAAQRxCwAzoLCC4QxwEQrwEQkQI6BQguEJECOgUIABCxAzoLCC4QsQMQxwEQowI6BAgAEEM6BAguEEM6BQgAEJECOgsILhDHARCjAhCRAjoHCC4QsQMQQzoECAAQAzoICC4QxwEQrwE6BwgAELEDEApQ_pQFWN2oBWCOuQVoAXACeACAAYsCiAHTB5IBBTEuNS4xmAEAoAEBqgEHZ3dzLXdpesgBAsABAQ&sclient=gws-wiz ) even back then and became Karenga ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maulana_Karenga ) 's Vice-President. Last I saw of him was maybe 10 years ago in Leimert Park and while he still looked like he was a member of US (all of whom tried to look like Karenga) he had left that org. But in the film (made in 2010) he was listed as US Vice-President. Now the LACC student strike of March 1969 was within two months after the Bunchy Carter and John Huggin's murders at UCLA ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bunchy_Carter#1969_UCLA_shooting ) but City College had no problems at least none that I was aware of though we had Panthers and other US people along with Nation of Islam, the SCLC, NAACP, SNCC and others as members. (See http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED028767.pdf ( http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED028767.pdf ) Pages 9-10). Another LACCer shown was Raymond Turner who I nicknamed the ‘People's Poet’. He was in it cause his mother, Caffie Greene ( https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2010-jun-07-la-me-caffie-greene-20100607-story.html ) , had created the teen post where Bunchy and other Slausons gang members many of whom became Panthers ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bunchy_Carter#Early_life ) hung. There were other people I knew or know personally: Bilal (whom I knew from the Coalition Against Police Abuse and the Black Radical Congress which were convened by Michael Zin Zun ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_Zinzun ) (dead bout 10 years now (I can't keep up with time)). Michael was mentioned but not shown along with Marvin X who was also in the CAPA and the BRC. I knew of the Freeman Bros ( https://sfbayview.com/2014/11/salute-to-the-freeman-brothers-last-testament-of-elder-freeman-a-giant-of-a-man/ ) (both dead now) and Elaine Brown ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elaine_Brown ) had once saved me from the cops. I had jaywalked across Central and I heard the burp of a cop car. I ran into the Panther office and Elaine came out and went one or two doors down and came out with 5 or 6 brothers with pool cues. Cops left. She looked great in the movie. All three featured prominently in the movie. Think I had told you that it is difficult for me to watch sht having to do with that time period and maybe that's why even though I watched it again last night it's difficult for me to recall specifics What did surprise me was that Bunchy was portrayed (almost til his death) as a peacemaker between the Party and US. Also surprising was the omission of the squabble between Geronimo Pratt ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geronimo_Pratt ) and Julio (pronounced Joo-lee-o) Butler ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geronimo_Pratt#Murder_charges ) who I do not think was a pig the whole time like many did and some still do. I lived with my mother directly underneath Julio at 2807 Hillcrest. I first became aware of Julio when we moved there in 1964. Julio was a hairdresser with a shop, Mr Julio's", on Adams less than two blocks from the pad. I think he may have been a Sheriff's deputy before that but that was rumor not fact to my knowledge. Whatever it would have been a difficult proposition to be a deputy while spending 8 hours a day for years fixing women’s hair. Julio was head of Section 3A at Adams and Montclair almost directly across from Johnny's Pastrami stand (unfortunately closed now). I gave two or three presentations on Mao there. 3 Panthers were later gunned down by the LAPD there. ( https://www.liberationnews.org/the-7th-black-martyrs-tour-la-rebellion/ ) The following may be evidence, however, of him being a snitch: One day, after I had moved out I went to my mom's apartment and she had a very worried look. I asked her what was wrong and she said "Listen". I heard a beating going on upstairs. Momma said "They gon kill somebody." I went upstairs and knocked on his door. He opened the peep hole and saw it was me and opened the door. With him were two other grown men. I said "Julio what the fck's going on"? He said "We got a couple of US niggers up here." There were two late teens/early 20s on the floor with their hands tied behind them and blood on the hardwood floor. One of them was a red-devil ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Secobarbital ) dropping friend of mine who lived almost directly across the street. I said "Julio, I don't know anything bout this other dude but that's Felix from across the street." Julio mumbled something about not recognizing him. It was bullshit and as I thought about it it was Julio proving his ‘bonafides’ to the other two. Geronimo had been past there cause one time he brought my brother a .38 and told him to watch my back. Here's the way I got it figured: The split between Julio and Geronimo was an alpha dog dispute that Julio was losing. I think he wrote up a 'poison pill' letter ("If anything happens to me then open this...") accusing G of the Santa Monica tennis court murders ( https://patch.com/california/santamonica/black-panther-wrongfully-accused-of-killing-teacher-ie64d9a37a0 ) and that Julio gave the letter to one of his cop friends (maybe from being known prior to his becoming a hairdresser) who opened the letter and took it to headquarters. G was arrested. Julio testified against him. G went to jail and Julio became head of security at FAME church ( https://www.famechurch.org/ ). I did a play there in '98 and saw Julio there. I walked up to him and said "Julio, what about this G thing?" He told me, "Imani, my daddy told me that 'A lie can go around the world three times and still not catch up to the truth'." I have no idea what the fuck he meant. JAI
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