The things that truly matter…

In the summer heat of 1966, racial tensions between African Americans and whites in Cleveland erupted into a riot that left four people dead, 30 critically injured, and 240 homes and businesses burned in the Hough community. In October, 1966, the Black Panthers, founded " to serve the needs of the oppressed people in our communities and defend them against their oppressors (www.blackpanther.org), " adopted their party platform and program. " What We Want & What We Believe " demanded housing, education, military exemption for black men, an immediate end to police brutality and murder of black people, jury trials of blacks by their peers, release of all black prisoners, and the establishment of a black colony in the United States under the auspices of the United Nations that would empower black people to determine their own national destiny societal oppression. Subsequently, its focus shifted to the creation of community programs to address poverty and improve health. The late Larry Slaughter was a Black Panther. I met him in the decade that followed the Hough riots in Cleveland at Myron T. Herrick Junior High School. He was a well-established presence in the building; I had recently arrived from an across town senior high school. He taught industrial arts; I taught English, but most importantly, we both taught children. Within weeks of my arrival in the school, Mr. Slaughter confronted me and tried to dissuade me from making home visits in the neighborhood. I was determined to contact the parents of truant/disruptive students; he was equally determined that I would not