2 The Compass Monday, December 14,1998
photo by Eugene O’Neal
Marcus Riddick takes a shot during last year’s basketball action.
Shaunell McMillan on the passing of Kwame Toure
Guest Columnist
By Shaunell McMillan
You may have missed the limited
news coverage on the death of Kwame
Toiire. Ask your friends who Kwame
Toure is and you may often get a
puzzled look or an indifferent shrug. It
may even be hard for you to find the
name Kwame Toure in your history
books.
The fact that his name is xmknown
and unacknowledged by so many is a
shame in itself because not many de
cades ago Toure stood as a hero to mil
lions of black youth and as one of
America's leading proponents for
change.
Some of you may be more familiar
with the name Stokley Carmichael,
which was his birth name. While a stu
dent at Howard University, Toure,
along with himdreds of other students,
was beaten and jailed repeatedly in ef
forts to end segregation. He was a par
ticipant in the Freedom Rides of the
early 1960's and later risked his life to
help register thousands of disenfran
chised African-Americans throughout
the South.
It was vmder the name Carmichael
that he came into the spotlight as chair
person of the Student Non-Violent Co
ordinating Committee (SNCC), a group
that mobilized college students from
across the covmtry in order to stand for
the civU rights of blacks in America.
Carmichael was a leader whose
views were often seen as controversial
and revolutionary but he was not alone
in the opinion that revolution (change)
is exactly what was needed to end in
justice in this country. In a 1966 march
in Mississippi he popularized the
phrase "Black Power" and, in doing
this, endorsed what would become the
label for a movement that would in
spire millions.
"Black Power" was called racist by
many people but Toure explained: "It
is a call for black people in this coimtry
to begin to define their own goals, to
lead their own organizations to resist
the racist institutions and values of this
society." It was political and economic
empowerment.
Toure was named Prime Minister of
the Black Panther Party in 1968, an or
ganization known for its militant stand
against the system of apartheid that
existed here in America. In our history
classes we are often taught about Mcir-
tin Luther King Jr. and others who ad
vocated non-violence, but rarely do we
discuss the fact that like Toure, many
blacks were ready to pick up arms in
defense against a system which they
viewed as oppressive and violent it
self.
In 1969 he left the U.S. for the African
nation of Guinea and began to advo
cate the establishment of a homeland
in Africa for oppressed blacks. Toure
contended that capitalism and West
ern Imperialism had lead to the exploi
tation of billions of non-whites around
the globe. He changed his name from
Stokley Carmichael and took the name
Kwame Toure from African leaders
Kwame Nkrumah (Ghana) and Ahmed
Sekou Toure (Guinea). He also founded
the AU-People's Revolutionary Party
(AAPRP) which stiU exists today.
It was in Guinea that Toure died of
prostate cancer on Sunday, Nov. 15. He
was 57.
Toure received much criticism from
black and white leaders for advocating
socialism and "Black Power," and for
speaking against capitalism, Zionism
and the United States. Though many
disagreed with his fiery cries for revo
lution, it carmot be denied that many
of the rights that we take for granted
today would not be possible if it was
not for the sacrifice of Toure and others
Uke him.
His life should hold a special interest
to the college students of today. Often
we struggle to graduate and take little
time to get involved in anything that
we perceive of being out of our indi
vidual comfort zones.
Many students have no idea that orJy
decades ago cries for freedom rang
from campuses and youth across the
nation. They were people our age who
were willing to risk their lives and de
mand revolution (change). Toure stood
as a voice for thousands of black youth
and in keeping his name and memory
alive, may we never lose sight of the
difference one voice can make in the
struggle to being about change in soci
ety.