Opening Roundtable Discussion with Curators: "'Revolution in Our Lifetime': The Black Panther Party and Political Organizing in Baltimore, 1968-1974"

Description

This roundtable conversation brings together the curators of the exhibition "'Revolution in our Lifetime': The Black Panther Party and Political Organizing in Baltimore, 1968-1974." Hear from the team of students, including Johns Hopkins junior Gerardo Fontes and recent Johns Hopkins alum Emma Petite, who conducted months of archival research, read through thousands of pages of newspapers, and spoke with experts and eyewitnesses to rediscover the activities, motivations, and programs of the Panthers in Baltimore as well as their repression by law enforcement. Please join them as they share their experiences and findings. All are invited to engage in a conversation about this remarkable chapter of Baltimore history and its legacies.

About the Exhibit

"'Revolution in our Lifetime': The Black Panther Party and Political Organizing in Baltimore, 1968-1974" is on display at the Peale from April 12 to May 26. The exhibit explores the founding, programs, and everyday activities of the Black Panther Party's Baltimore chapter, as well as the party's ideological foundations and state repression it experienced. The exhibit further examines the party's links to other political organizations in the city within the broader context of political organizing in the period. The exhibit features rare artifacts, documents, and photographs, as well as copies of the party's newspaper.

The exhibit examines the persistent racial segregation and bigotry that shaped the city and animated Black political organizing. Visitors will learn about the power of grassroots organizing against racism, as well as how regular people made demands for revolution in Baltimore. The Baltimore chapter's history also illustrates how police mobilized copious resources to undermine and destroy the Black Panther Party. "Revolution in Our Lifetime" also addresses legacies and provides contemporary lessons from this era of political ferment in Baltimore.

The exhibit is supported by Inheritance Baltimore: Humanities and Arts Education for Black Liberation; the Chloe Center for the Critical Study of Racism, Immigration, and Colonialism; and the Center for Africana Studies at Johns Hopkins University. It draws on the holdings of the Johns Hopkins University Sheridan Libraries, University of Baltimore Special Collections and Archives, University of Maryland Baltimore County Special Collections, Goucher College Special Collections & Archives, the Maryland Center for History and Culture, and others.