Black History Speaks: 1971 interview with Angela Davis

A 1971 interview with Angela Davis, American socialist organizer, philosopher, and professor who was periodically a member of the Black Panther Party and SNCC. Angela Davis activist and the author gives an interview in 1971 for a news film from Vibrations. This was filmed when she was on trial in a controversial California court case involving the Black Panthers. The introduction to the film refers to the Black Nationalist Movement and the Black Liberation Movement as a militant minority movement. This reveals the level of bias and prejudice that African Americans face when fighting for basic rights. The first section of the interview discusses what is exactly revolutionary. Angela Davis explains that the whole structure of society will have to be rebuilt in terms of economics and politics. The people should have control of the wealth of the nation, not a privileged few. People erroneously associate violence with being a revolutionary. However, oppressive states use violence to maintain control. The