Self Defense, Self-Respect, & Self-Determination

The story of 50’s “negro” activist Robert F. Williams, told through a narrator, his widow Mabel, and recordings of his speeches and radio broadcasts. Williams was more concerned with the “afro-american’s” rights to not being lynched, abused or otherwise fucked with by white racists and thugs, than their right to ride at the front of a bus or take a dump next to a white man. Williams can be described as a militant as he promoted self-armament, self-defense through learning to use guns. William’s friendship with Malcolm X was a natural symbiosis. Its pretty clear that Williams laid the groundwork for the Black Panthers as well. Most importantly, his story has broad implications and analogies to the current state of American government corruption and oppression of the disenfranchised. This is a pretty thorough biography that details his life work. Interviews with his widow and recordings of him are excellent though the narrator sounds a little sophomoric, college radio for my taste and should be cue’ed past if possible.

1) music, “npr radio show” type intro to
2) mabel tells story of Dixie, arming oneself against the klan, questioning the law, white-folks
3) robert’s activism, joining the marines and being self-taught and “freedome through guns”
4) npr narrator explains his NAACP activism, segregation in Monroe
5) recordings of him, telling it like it is discussing militancy
6) Rifle club, welfare, integration
7) narrator describes his launching of a newsletter
8) recording of Williams, white man’s “democracy”, very Malcolm X’ish
9) Williams with Malcolm X, getting money for guns
10) revolution in Cuba, “yankee go home”
11) permission to use a public pool (as opposed to having their children drowning in local swimming holes), Klan’s involvement, amazing
12) account of KKK gathering, how the FBI and police worked with the klan
13) assassination attempt on Williams
14) freedom riders appear for non-violent picketing and protest
15) Williams leaving Monroe after being railroaded, a brief sax interlude, exodus to cuba
16) talks of cuba and their sympathy to American negroes, how his newsletter got started in cuba
17) the birth of his radio show “radio free Dixie”, cool radio promos, “legal” i.d.’s, play with the following
18) news of the Alabama church bombing and Dixie’s take
19) (cue up past the sophomoric narrator) broadcast from Cuba, a call for black revolt, wow!
20) mabel discusses communist China and USSR’s support in those days
21) (cue past the narrator intro) 1966 speech about Black Power
22) anti-war message to negro draftees in Vietnam, “mr Charlie”
23) Williams wanting to return to US, but moving to Africa
24) return to US, Detroit as a refuge, not very easy, imprisonment
25) closing wrap-up by narrator a nice collage of his final theme: “resist, freedom now or death!”