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St okel y CarmchaelandPan Af ri cani smBack t oBl ackPower

DON LDJ Mc ORM K

Stokel y Carm chael i s an ex ex i s t en t i a l h e r o a bl ack man whobecame d i s i l l u s i o n e d dur i ng t he l a s t ha l f of t he 1960s wi t h t heunrel ent i ng angui sh and ci rcumscri pti on of t he process of be-com ng Travel i ng a rather bel abor ed and of ten tortuous r o u t ehe made t he i n t e l l e c t u a l odyssey through Al ber t Camus t o FrantzFanonand then George Padmorea And comor t abl y nest l ed now

Preparat i on of t h i s paper was supported by a Ski dmore Facul t y Resear chGr ant I ami ndebted t o my col l eagues, Erwn L Levi ne and Anthony GCovat t a, f or suggest i ng subst ant i ve ands t y l i s t i c r ef i nement s i n t he a r t i c l e 1The i ndi vi dual wor ks by each wr i ter whi ch seemt o have mos t i mpr essedCarm chael a r e Al ber t Camus The Rebel New York : RandomHouse,Vi nt age Books, 1956 , Frantz Fanon, The Wetched of t he Earth NewYork Grove P r e s s I nc 1968 , andGeor ge Padmor e, Pan AMcan smor Commun sm?


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STOKELYC RMCH ELN N FRC NSM 38 7i n t he correct i deol ogy, h i s cl ar i on voi ce once agai n i n v i t e s bl ackAmer i ca t o unchai n i t s e l f t h i s t i me i n a prot rac ted l i b e r a t i o nst r uggl e buttressed wi t h t he sal vat i onar y doctr i ne of Pan- Af r i can-i sm The one t i me apot heosi s of yout hf ul bl ack l eader shi p, s t i l lsupr emel y conf i dent i n h i s avowed r o l e as s t udent and teacher ofp o l i t i c s , i s convi nced t h a t t h i s encompass i ng doct r i ne pr ovi despr ogr ammat i c succor f or t he t a t t e r e d r emnant s o f t he bl ack- powermovement i ndeed f o r al l Af r i cans i n t he di aspor a Carmchael s p o s i t i o n , and p a r t i c u l a r l y how he ar r i ved t her edeserves careful ana l y s i s Fewwoul d argue wi t h t he cont ent i onthat Carmchael was not onl y a pr oduct of , but a l eadi ng con-t r i bu t o r t o, t he di r ec t i on o f t he bl ack l i b e r a t i o n s t r u g g l e that h i ss t o r y i s not h i s a l o ne , but a l s o s e r v e s t o some ext ent as a hi s t oryof t he `Bl ack Movement dur i ng t he past s i x years . Not muchhas been s a i d, however , about why bl ack power f a i l ed t o becomeap o l i t i c a l i deol ogy I t i s my hope t h a t by pr obi ng t he det our s i n h i si t i n e r a r y may uncover some c l ue s t o t hi s f a i l u r e Thi s essay w i l l out l i ne and c r i t i c a l l y expl or e Carmchael s p o l i t i -c a l t hi nki ng as i t devel oped and was modi f i ed dur i ng h i s th reed i s t i n c t s t a g e s as ( 1) ex i s t e nt i a l r ebe l , ( 2) i n t e r e s t - gr o up pl ur a-l i s t , and ( 3) bl ack r evol ut i onar y Pr i or t o t he summer of 1966, i nt he f i r s t per i od, Carmchael voi ced t he ex i s t e nt i a l sent i ment f o ract i on i n c i v i l - r i g h t s a c t i v i t y whi l e di savowi ng t he necessi t y f o r ani n s t r u c t i v e or gui di ng i deol ogy The second s t a g e , a short t r a n s i -

London Denni s Dobson, 1956) Carmchael s admrat i on f o r Camus be-comes t emper ed, however , when he concl udes that t he French wr i t er copsout on t he i ssue o f t he u t i l i t y o f vi ol ence. See h i s speech, The Di a l e c t i c s o fL i ber at i on del i ver ed i n London dur i ng J u l y 1967 i n St okel y Carmchael ,St okel y Speaks : Bl ack Power Back t o Pan AMcani smNew York : RandomHouse, Vi ntage Books, 1971) , 92 Al so, i n Carmchael s wel l - publ i c i z ed r e -sponse t o Davi d F r o s t s quer y about t he whi t e man i n t he worl d he mos tadmred, Camus i s t he f i r s t name he u t t e r s . But , a ga i n , Camus i s di smsseda s havi ng copped o u t , and Carmchael then stuns t he s t udi o audi ence w t h h i ssel ec t i on of Adol ph Hi t l e r a s a man t o be admred f or h i s geni us . Davi dFrost Show Apr i l 13 , 1970.2_ See t he edi t o r s pre face i n Carmchael , St okel y Speaks, x


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388 TH JOURN LOFPOLTTI CS VOL 35 1973t i o n a l per i od f r omMay 1966 t o J anuar y 1967 was char act er i zed byh i s par adoxi cal combi nat i on of r h e t o r i c r e j e c t i n g Amer i can i n s t i t u -t i o n s and t he pr omul gat i on o f a d i s t i n c t l y Amer i can br and of p l u r a l -i sm Dur i ng t he f i n a l per i od, post - J anuar y 1967 Carmchael ' s un-equi vocal convi ct i on of t he n ec es s i t y f o r armed s t r u ggl e was c r y s t a l -l i z e d a l s o t h i s st age was mar ked by a s h i f t i n emphasi s a f t e rJ anuar y 1969 f r omhi s concern f or Thi r d Worl d s o l i da r i t y t o Pan-Af r i cani smMore s p e c i f i c a l l y t he ai m of t h i s paper i s t o o f f e r a d i f f e r e n tper spect i ve on Carmchael ' s p o l i t i c a l t hought ; an assessment whi chdi sput es t he rather g l i b and u n c r i t i c a l i n t e r p r e t a t i o n t h a t hi s con-ver si on t o Pan- Af r i cani sm evol ved smoot hl y and i nexor abl y ast he hi ghest p o l i t i c a l expr essi on of Bl ack Power . Rej ect ed her ei ni s t he proposi t i on t h a t Carmchael ' s soj our ns as Mi ssi ssi ppi Del t ac i v i l - r i g h t s a c t i v i s t as r ovi ng ambassador of Thi r d Worl d l i b e r a t i o nmovement s, and as Kwam Nkr umah' s apost l e wer e s t a g e s o f a l o gi c al gr owt h t h a t t he cor e i d ea s al r eady expressed i n 1965- 66wer e mer el y nour i shed, st r engt hened, and br ought t o f r u i t i o n undert he t ut el age r ecei ved i n Conakry, Gui nea 4 I ndeed, t he morepl ausi bl e expl anat i on i s t h a t Carmchael ' s i n t e l l e c t u a l growt hcame i n gr opi ng s p u r t s i n an e f f o r t not onl y t o bl unt t he barbs ofh i s c r i t i c s bot h bl ack andwhi t e, but even more poi nt edl y t o escapet he r es t r a i n t s o f a s el f - c r ea t ed t heo r et i c a l cul - de- sac Carm chael ' spassage t o hi s rather cursory ver si on o f Pan- Af r i cani smwas not somch a consi st ent r ef i nement o f e a r l i e r i dea s as i t was amaneuvert o t r anscend an i n t e l l e c t u a l i mpasse, t o br oach t he i nher ent l y con-t r a d i c t o r y as s er t i o ns t h a t t he t a c t i c s of pl ural i sm as he devel opedthem paved t he wayt o bl ack power anda restructured s o ci a l order

s I b i d 2 24 Car m chael ' s vol ume, St okel y Speaks, present s i n chronol ogi cal order ac o l l e c t i o n of hi s a r t i c l e s and speeches whi ch purport t o demonst r at e t he i deo-l o g i c al mat ur at i on of t he aut hor - hi s c on s i s t en t gr owt h and devel opment a sa r evol ut i onar y a c t i v i s t and t heor et i ci an f r om 19 5 u n t i l t he p r e s e n t 1971 .I bi d i x Y e t t he 5 s el ec t i o ns appear al most i d l y a s i f i n a vacuum Theprovi s i on o f dat es and pl aces o f publ i cat i on o r del i ver y o f speeches neveranchor s themw t h i n a f i r mf ramework Pr esumabl y afewp er s i s t en t themsf o r exampl e, ant i capi t al i sm o r i ns t i t u t i o na l i z ed r ac i sm ar e supposed t o pro-vi de t he uni f yi ng t hread, a concat enat i on whi ch f l owers i n t he concept ual symmet r y of Pan- Af r i cani sm


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39 THE JOURN LOF POLI TI CS voL 35 1973obscure one s v i s i o n And Carm chael , appar ent l y f rustrated anddi smayed, began t o t ake r ef uge i n doct r i ne he crossed t he l i n ef r om r ev o l t t o r evol ut i on He l e f t Camus f or Fanon s Thi r d Worl dwar s of nat i onal l i b e r a t i o n But one poi nt must agai n be emphas i zed The t r a n s i t i o n ofCarm chael f r om man i n r ev o l t t o r evol ut i onar y advocat e di d notbecome s t a r k l y apparent u n t i l t he summer of 1967 mores p e c i f i c a l l yu n t i l h i s t r i p t o Cuba I n f a c t there was a br i e f i nt err upt i on i nt h i s t r ansf ormat i on, a c r i t i c a l andconf usi ng j unctur e whi ch occurreddur i ng t he i ncubat i on s t a g e of t he cont emporar y bl ack- powermovement , t he per i od under di scussi on here whi ch i s r oughl ybracketed by t he Mer edi t h March on one end and t he excl usi on ofAdam Powel l f r om Congr ess on t he ot her Bet ween May 1966 and J anuar y 1967 t he i nscr ut abl e sl oganbl ack power , p a r t i c u l a r l y as i t was bei ng def i ned by St okel yCarm chael , stood es s ent i a l l y f or t he empl oyment of convent i onalgr oup- t heor y t a c t i c s t o a t t a i n gr eat er p o l i t i c a l and econom c bene f i t s Mor eover , dur i ng t h i s per i od, t he ambi gui t y of t he sl ogan i t s e l fwas very much a source of i t s v i t a l i t y I n succeedi ng y e a r s a st he i mpul se t o construct an i deol ogy i n t e n s i f i e d t he ambi gui t y,once a source of s t r e n g t h became a d i s t i n c t weakness I nst ead ofcont r i but i ng t o a coherent i d eo l ogi c al schema, e f f o r t s a f t e r J anuar y1967 can most gener ousl y be descr i bed as y i e l d i ng a p r o l i f e r a t i o nof d e f i n i t i o n s of t he t e rm bl ack power . And t h i s d e f i n i t i o n a lp r o l i f e r a t i o n whi ch enhanced i t s ambi gui t y made t he concept ofbl ack power vul ner abl e t o r h e t o r i c a l co- opt at i on by i t s opponent s Nei t her Ri char d Ni xon nor Whi t ney Young, among o t h e r s ex hi bi t -ed muchdi scom i t ure when, a f t e r i n i t i a l msgi vi ngs, t hey event ual l yendorsed, i f not i n f ac t pr escr i bed, c e r t a i n brands of bl ack power Of course some of t he oppos i t i on- f or exampl e, RoyWl ki ns , whow t hst ood several chal l enges on t h i s i s s u e f r om w t h i n t he N P remai ned s t e a d f a s t i n t h e i r r epudi at i on of t he concept .Thus, t o t he extent t h a t Carm chael was i ndeed a l eadi ng a r c h i -t ec t i n f ormul at i ng an i n c i p i e n t bl ackpower i deol ogy, he was i ngood measur e a cont r i but or t o t he accel er at i ng f r u s t r a t i o n andf u t i l i t y of t he conf usi ng di al ogue on bl ack power dur i ng 1967- 68Per haps i t i s i mpossi bl e t o di vor ce Carm chael , t he c i v i l - r i g h t sa c t i v i s t f r om Carm chael , t he s oc i al t h e o r i s t but i t i s doubt f ul


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STOKELYC RMCH ELN N FRC NSM 39t hat t he accol ades he so deser vedl y earned i n t he Sout h a s t he magni f i cent bar bar i an wer e equal l y war r ant ed f o r h i s r o l e asc r e a t i v e p o l i t i c a l t hi nker The br avado, e l a n and i n s p i r a t i o n a lcour age di spl ayed i n t he face of per sonal danger di d not i nf useh i s i de as w t h greater t r ut h f u l ne s s Bef or e we take a c l os e r l ook at Carm chael s t hi nki ng dur i ngt h i s per i od, one possi bl e source of conf usi on shoul d be addressed Hi s f i r s t book, Bl ackPower : The P o l i t i c s o Li berati on i n Ameri caco- aut hor ed w t h pol i t i c a l s ci ent i s t Charl es Ham l t on, was publ i shedi n November , 1967 t en mont hs a f t e r t he excl usi on of AdamCPowel l Appear i ng when i t di d t he book m sl eadi ngl y cont r i but edt o t he sense of conf l uence and cont i nui t y i n t he devel opment ofCarm chael s i de as obscur i ng t he s i g n i f i c a n t l eap he had madeHi st or y by- passed pr i nt i ng t echnol ogy The drama of t he Newarkand Det r oi t upr i si ngs had unf ol ded, t he l andmar k Bl ack PowerConf er ence i n Newark had ass embl ed and adj our ned, and Car-m chael had t r avel ed abroad When t he book was publ i shed, i twas out dat ed, f o r i t s own aut hor hadmovedwel l beyond i t I nt he Pr ef ace, f or exampl e, Carm chael s a y s

t h i s book does not di scuss a t l engt h t he i nt er nati onal s i t u a t i o nt he rel at i onshi p o f our bl ack l i b e r a t i o n st r uggl e t o t he r e s t o f t hewor l d But Bl ack Power means that bl ack peopl e see t hemsel ves a spart o f a new f o r c e somet i mes cal l ed t he Thi r d Worl d that wesee our st r uggl e a s c l o s e l y re l at ed t o l i be r at i on st r uggl es ar oundt he wor l d Wemust hook up w t h these st r uggl es 8At t he t i me of publ i cat i on, however , t h i s t opi c whi ch was notdi scussed at l engt h and t r eat ed onl y c u r s o r i l y at b e s t hadbecomeCarm chael s pr i mar y pr eoccupat i on I n t he l a t t e r part of J anuar y1967 Carm chael had j our neyed t o Puerto Ri co where he si gneda protocol of co- oper at i on bet ween SNCCand t he Puerto Ri canPr o- I ndependence Movement l a t e r he toured Eur ope and thenv i s i t e d Cuba Al most every publ i c speech he del i ver ed dur i ngt he summer and f a l l of 1967 f ocused on h i s proposed l i nkage w t ht he Thi r d Worl d One of many i l l u s t r a t i o n s was t he heral ded

s St okel y Carm chael and Charl es Ham l t on, Bl ack Power New York : RandomHouse, Vi nt age Books, 1967) , x - x i


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392 nm oxmNAL of PoLmcs voL 35, 1973br oadcast over Havana Radi o on t he second anni ver sary o f t heWat t s r e vo l t I n p a r t , he sai d omades o f t he t h i r d wor l d o f As i a , A f r i ca and La t in Amer i caI want you t o know t h a t Af r o- Nor t h Amer i cans w th i n t he Uni t edS t a t e s ar e f i g h t i n g f or t he i r l i be r a t i o n I t i s a str uggl e o f t o t a l r evol u-t i on i n whi ch we pr opose t o change t he i mpe r i a l i s t , c a p i t a l i s t andr a c i a l i s t structure o f t he Uni t ed S t a t e s whi ch oppr esses you out si deand us w th i n Wehave no ot her al t ernat i ve but t o take up ar ms andstr uggl e f or our t o t a l l i b e r a t i o n and t o t a l r evol ut i on i n t he Uni t ed

S t a t e s . 9

S i g n i f i c a n t l y , t he t h i r d wor l d l i b e r a t i o n s t r uggl e s ment i oned byCarm chael i n t he pr ef ace of hi s book wer e qui t e s p e c i f i c a l l ychar act er i zed i n t hi s speech as Fanon- l i ke armed s t r uggl e s I nt e r e s t i ngl y , one i n d i r e c t consequence of t h i s t h i r d wor l d p r e -occupat i on was Carmchaers- st at ement wr i t t en i n August and i n-serted i n hi s book on t he page pr ecedi ng t he Pr ef ace Thi s s t a t e -ment made t he c l a imthat hi s book pr esent ed a p o l i t i c a l i deol ogy .Carm chael had poi nt edl y wr i t t en i t i n r esponse t o a J ames Rest one d i t o r i a l done i n Havana whi l e bot h he and Carm chael wer e a t -t endi ng a meet i ng o f t he Or gani zat i on o f Lat i n- Amer i can S o l i d a r i t y Rest on had taken Carm chael t o t a s k f o r f or egoi ng t he bl ackstr uggl e i n t he Uni t ed S t a t e s and i ndul gi ng hi msel f i n e r s a t zf a n t a s i e s o f Guevar aesque g u e r i l l a conf r ont at i ons .9 ewYork Ti mes ug 18, 1967 17 I t a l i c s added )

See a l s o hi s address

Sol i dar i t y w t h Lat i n Amer i ca i n Carm chael St okel y Speaks 101- 110 o The f u l l st at ement r eads :

Thi s book pr esent s a p o l i t i c a l f r amewor k and

i deol ogy whi ch r epr esent s t he l a s t r easonabl e oppor t uni t y f or t h i s soci et y t owork out i t s r a c i a l probl ems short o f pr ol onged dest r ucti ve g u e r i l l a war f are That such vi ol ent war f are may be unavoi dabl e i s not her ei n deni ed. But i fthere i s t he s l i ght e s t chance t o avoi d i t , t he p o l i t i c s o f Bl ack Power as de-scri bed i n t h i s book i s seen as t he onl y vi abl e hope sampl i ng of t he pr ovoki ng e d i t o r i a l f ol l ows :

St okel y Carm chael i spl ayi ng a m ser abl e game down her e. He i s not onl y condemni ng hi s owncountry abr oad but he i s ms l eadi ng Fi del Cast r o and t he ot her r evol ut i onar yCommuni sts f r om La t i n Amer i ca about t he condi t i on and power of t he Negroi n Ameri ca The f a c t s ar e pl ai n Hi s bl ack power pol i cy has not gai nedpopul ar suppor t among t he Negro communi ty i n t he Uni t ed S t a t e s . He hasl o s t hi s base as head of SN . . , and he i s s t r u t t i n g around Havanaas a symbol of t he Ameri can Negr o most o f whomhave r e j e c t e d hi s l eader -


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STOKELYC RMCH ELNDP N FRC NSM 393But one need not onl y compar e Carmchael s Thi rd Worl dspeeches wi t h t he cont ent o f h i s f i r s t book For f urt her conf i rma-t i o n t ha t t h i s book, Bl ack Power, r e f l e c t s i de as a r t i c u l a t e d i n t hei nteri mor pre- Fanon peri od, one shoul d compar e i t wi t h t he maj oressays he wrot e t h e n , between May 1966 and J anuary 1967 remarkabl e qual i ty about Carmchael s work at t he t i me i s i t sr e pe t i t i v e ne s s and r edundancy Metaphors, i l l u s t r a t i o n s , quotat i onsf romother aut hors f requent l y reappear - of t en wi t hout acknowl edg-ment of pr i o r use-word f or word or wi t h s l i g h t modi f i cat i on ashe r e s t a t e s h i s p o s i t i o n on such bas i c t hemes as i nt e g r at i o n, r ac i alpri de, nonvi ol ence, c o a l i t i o n s , and t he l i k e Ac t u al l y , t h i s r e p e t i t i o ni s not s u r p r i s i n g Dur i ng t h i s per i od Carmchael was an un-q u a l i f i e d a c t i v i s t Thepotent i al f o r r e t r e at i ng t o a s c h o l a r l y ref ugewas ni l However underst andabl e, h i s observance o f t he copy-r i g h t l aws was very casual The f i r s t three chapters o f t he bookare i n l a r g e measure a pat chwork of previ ous l y made statements,some used verbat i m others rephrased The r e i t e r a t i o n i s par t i c ul a r -l y evi dent i n chapt er 2 , Bl ack Power I t s Need and Subst ance,probabl y t he most i mport ant t h e or e t i c al chapt er i n t he book, andone whi ch draws h eav i l y , t hough wi t hout acknowl edgment , f romh i s l andmark a r t i c l e s , What WeWant i n The NewYork Revi ewof Books, Sept ember 2 2 , 1966, and Toward Bl ack Li berat i on,The Massachusett s Revi ew, Autumn 1966 12 (Both a r t i c l e s are r e -pr i nt ed i n h i s newbook, Stokel y Speaks , the f ormer under t het i t l e Power and Raci sm )Other, more s p e c i f i c passages coul d be c i t e d However , t hes h i p Carmchael i s t oo i n t e l l i g e n t and cyni cal not t o knowwhat he i sdoi ng He has gi ven up on try i ng t o persuade t he Negroes at home t o f ol l owhi s Bl ack Power t h e s i s . NewYork Ti mes, Aug 2 , 1967, 36 I t al i c s added 12 For t he f l a v o r o f t h i s t ranspl antat i on, compare page 5 i n Bl ack Powerwi th t he begi nni ng o f What We Want , TheNewYork Revi ew of BooksSept 22, 1966, 5 See a l s o St okel y Carmchael , Negro Ri ghts and t heAmer i can Future (A Sympos i um , The Negro D gest , 15 ( Oct ober 1966),57- 60; Stokel y Carmchael , Tal ki ng About i t Bl ack Power The Wdeni ngD al ogue, NewSouth, 21 (Summer 1966), 64- 80 ; J ohn Benson, I ntervi ewWth NewSNCC Chai rman, Mi l i t a nt , May 2 3, 1966, 8 W l l i am P r i c e ,SNCCs Path? Carmchael Answer s, Nati onal Guardi an, J une 4, 1966, 1 ,8- 9 Kennet h Nordi n, Carmchael Voi ces M l i tancy, Chri st i an Sci ence Mon-i t o r , Sept 22, 1966, 10


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394 THE JOURN L OF POLI TICS VOL 35, 1973pur pose of such compar i sons i s not t o demonst r at e Carm chael sf a c i l e l i t e r a r y m l eage, nor t o record t hose passages he seemed t of e e l warr ant ed mul t i pl e usage Rather , i t i s t o f i x h i s f i r s t bookf i r m y i n t he i nter i mper i od, a t l e a s t t o t he ext ent t h a t t he i deas e x -pressed t herei n r e f l e c t e d h i s advocacy, a t t h a t t i me , o f t he groupt heory o f p o l i t i c s Agai n, Carm chael had moved beyond hi s ownbook by t he t i me i t was publ i shed Obvi ousl y h i s progressi on con-t ri but ed t o t he conf usi on i n t he ranks of t he bl ackpower move-ment one r e c a l l s puzzl ed st udent s t humbi ng t hr ough Bl ack Poweri n search of t he s l o ga n s e s s e n c e , t ryi ng t o penet rate t he de f i n i t i o na lpandemoni umt h a t was t o l a s t t hr ough 1968 Bu t , t he i n t e nthere i s not t o accuse Carm chael o f concept ual phi l ander i ng I n-deed, t he ar gument t h a t Carm chael s Pan- Af r i cani sm has a t r a c e -abl e l i neage t o hi s e a r l i e r doctr i ne of bl ackpower i s accept ed whati s bei ng quest i oned i s t he - newf ound convent i onal w sdom t h a tt he f ormer i s e s s e n t i a l l y a ref i nement o f t he l a t t e r I n s t e a d , i t i ssuggest ed here t h a t Carm chael s doctr i ne o f Pan- Af r i cani sm i s ane f f o r t t o f r e e hi msel f f rom or a t l e a s t t r anscend t he reduct i o adabsurdum cont ai ned w t hi n hi s group- t heor y promul gat i on of bl ackpower race as the det erm nant of cat egor i c gr oups . What hadCarm chael r e a l l y s a i d i n t h i s i nter i mper i od?

I n t he i n t e r l ude bet ween rebel and r e vo l ut i o na r y , St okel y Car-m chael assi duousl y advocat ed or t hodox Amer i cani sm When hewas pressed t o def i ne bl ack power and i t s chal l enge t o Ameri ca,hi s response was qui t e r emarkabl e I n e f f e c t , hi s i n t e r p r e t a t i o no f bl ack power carr i ed w t h i t a t a c i t endor sement of some f unda-ment al prem ses o f Amer i can l i b e r a l i deol ogy, or what has beenmost apt l y l abel ed i n t e r e s t group l i b e r a l i s m 1 3 I f one pe e l st o t he core of hi s i n i t i a l demand f or bl ack power , what st andsreveal ed i s not a basi c chal l enge t o t he Amer i can system butqui t e i r o n i c a l l y a c a l l f or mor e o f t he same As t he Bl ack Pant her s

13 See, f or exampl e howt h i s phrase i s used by Theodore J . Low i n hi sexcel l ent book The End of Li bera l i sm I deol ogy, Pol i cy and the Cr i si s ofPubl i c Authori ty New York NortonCompany I nc 1969) , 68 79


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STOKELYC RMCH ELN N FMC NSM 395woul d somewhat gr at ui t ous l y char ge a f t e r t h e i r s p l i t w t h Car -m chael , he want ed t o f i ght f i r e wi t h f i r e Car m chael accept ed t he group bas i s o f p o l i t i c s The i mpor t anceof gr oups i n t he s o c i a l or der has l ong been r ecogni zed- exal t ed bys ome, damned by o t h e r s , but usual l y there as a d e i f i e d obj ect o fcont i nuous specul at i on A c l a s s i c Amer i can s t at ement on t hesubj ect i s t he wel l - known Federal i st No by J ames Madi s onI t i s bot h a descri pt i ve and nor mat i ve s t at ement The f a c t t ha tmen combi ne i n s o c i a l gr oupi ngs t o s at i s f y want s i s r ecogni zed, butt hese s o - c a l l e d f a c t i o ns ar e vi ewed negat i vel y - as havi ng a d-verse e f f e c t s on t he r i ght s o f ot her c i t i z e n s and on t he aggr e-gate i n t e r e s t s of t he communi t y Yet Madi s on offered advi ce onhowt he vi ol ence o f f a c t i o n m ght best be cont r ol l ed I n t eg r a lt o t he s o l u t i o n f o r t h i s oner ous pr obl em was a r epubl i can f o r m o fgover nment I n t e r e s t i n g l y , St okel y Carm chael , as he wor ked i n t he c i v i l - r i g h t smovement p r i o r t o t he 1964 Democr at i c Convent i on, was f ol l ow ngMadi son s counsel Whether he was consci ous o f i t or n o t , hi sef f or t s i n t he v o t e r - r e g i s t r a t i o n d r i v e wer e a mani f est at i on o f t heMadi s oni an di ct um Br oadeni ng t he base o f t he e l e c t o r a t e notonl y enhances t he p o s s i b i l i t y o f e l e c t i n g more wor t hy r epr esent a-t i v e s ; even mor e s i g n i f i c a n t l y , i t r ender s f a c t i o u s combi nat i ons l e s st o be dr eaded because i t ext ends spher es As Madi s on obser ved Ext end t he sphere, and you take i n a great er var i et y of p a r t i e sand i n t e r e s t s ; you make i t l e s s pr obabl e t h a t a maj or i t y of t hewhol e w i l l have a common mot i ve t o i nvade t he r i g h t s of ot herc i t i z e n s ; or i f such a common mot i ve e x i s t s , i t wi l l be mored i f f i c u l t f o r al l who f e e l i t t o di scover t h e i r own s t r e n g t h , and t oact i n uni son wi t h each ot her 14 I n t he Sout h i n 1 9 6 4 , r epubl i cangover nment was cont i ngent on t he r esponse o f t he Democr at i cPar t y ; i t coul d have been t he vehi cl e f o r ext endi ng spher es Buti t al l f e l l apar t i n At l ant i c Ci t y The r ebuf f o f t he Mssi ss i ppi FreedomDemocr at i c Pa r t y at t heDemocr at i c convent i on was a pi vot al exper i ence f o r Carm chael ,one whi ch shoul d not be under es t i mat ed The deep - f e l t sense of

b i t t e r n e s s , des p ai r , and anger over what he cons i der ed an overt act J a c o b E Cooke , ed TheFederal i st Cl e ve l a nd : Wor l d P ubl i s hi ng Company , 1 96 4 ) , 64


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396 nWOURN Lof POLrri cs VOL 35 1973t o depr i ve bl ack peopl e of r epr esent at i ve gover nment has beenpoi gnant l y di scussed i n hi s f i r s t book, Bl ack Power as wel l as e l s e-wher e After t h i s encount er , Carmchael became a voci f erous proponentof a r at her convent i onal pl ural i sm Gr oups wer e a f a c t o f l i f e But Madi son was msgui ded Onedoes not control t h e i r e f f e c t s byi nhi bi t i ng coal escence and gr oup sol i dar i t y- t he goal o f r epubl i cangover nment j u s t t he oppos i t e Count er vai l i ng power i s t heanswer , but t he bl ack manmus t not wai t f o r l o r n l y f o r i t t o mat er -i a l i z e Gi ve t he i nv i s i b l e hand or s e l f - c o r r e c t i n g process a bl ackboost An addi t i onal wel l - or gani zed gr oup or opposi ng c o l l e c t i v ei s t he ant i dot e f o r mt i gat i ng t he adverse e f f e c t s of f act i on Thi sr emedy i s needed because whi t e s oc i e t y a s Carmchael per cei vesi t , has no i nt ent i on o f gi vi ng up wi l l i ng l y or e a s i l y i t s posi t i ono f pr i o r i t y and aut hor i t y . The a c t i v e pur sui t of gr oup s e l f - i n -t e r e s t t he r e a l i t y o f t he soci al o r d e r and on t h i s poi nt Car -mchael i s mos t f o r t h r i g h t man s p o l i t i c s i s det ermned by h i seval uat i on o f mat er i al good and e v i l P o l i t i c s r e s u l t f r om a c o n -f l i c t of i n t e r e s t s not consci ences . 1 6The essence o f St okel y Carmchael s p o s i t i o n a f t e r t he Mssi ss i ppiMarch was t he recogni t i on and endor sement of i n t e r e s t - g r o u pl i b e r a l i s m He remnded bl ack peopl e t h a t t hey have nots u f f e r e d as i ndi vi dual s but as members of a gr oup ; t he r e f o r e t he i rl i b e r a t i o n l i es i n gr oup ac t i o n . Y e t he acknowl edged t h a t bl ackpeopl e mus t begi n wi t h t he f undament al t ask of coal escence,

t o consol i dat e behi nd t h e i r own Per haps no s i n g l e passagecapt ur es more s uc ci nc t l y Carmchael s mes sage dur i ng t h i s per i odt han t h a t i n whi ch he f i r s t unabashedl y l auds t he adopt i on of t heconcept of bl ack power and t hen c a s ua l l y de f i ne s i t I t i s a c a l lf o r bl ack peopl e i n t h i s country t o uni t e t o r ecogni ze t h e i r he r i t a get o bui l d a sense of communi t y I t i s a c a l l f o r bl ack peopl e t o begi nt o def i ne t h e i r own go al s t o l ead t h e i r own or gani zat i ons I t i s ac a l l t o r e j e c t t he r a c i s t i n s t i t u t i o n s and val ues o f t h i s soci et y 17Then comes t he c r i t i c a l st at ement , t h a t passage whi ch a f f o r d s t hekeenest i n s i ght i n t o t he t hi nki ng o f St okel y Carmchael dur i ng t h i s

15 Carmchael andHaml ton Bl ack Power v i i 1 I bi d, 75.17 I bi d ,


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STOKELYCARMCHAELNANAFRCANLSM 39t i me o f t r a n s i t i o n The concept o f Bl ack ower r e s t s on af undament al pr em se Bef ore a gr oup can enter the open s o c i e t y ,i t must f i r s t c l o s e ranks y t h i s wemean t h a t gr oup s o l i d a r i t y i snecessar y bef or e a gr oup can operate e f f e c t i v e l y f r om a bargai ni ngp o s i t i o n o f strength i n a p l u r a l i s t i c soci et y. s Thi s pr em se i s b as i c ,under l yi ng Carm chaers i deas ; gr oup s o l i d a r i t y i s necessary ande s s ent i a l andmust beachi eved i mmedi at el y Thet hen c on t r o ve r s i a li deas f or whi ch he was severel y r ebuked- f or exampl e, t he e x a l t a -t i on o f bl ackness, t he r epudi at i on o f i nt egrat i on and nonvi ol ence,and t he c r i t i c i s m of pr om nent bl ack l eaders- were i n l a r g emeasur e c o r o l l a r y proposi t i ons Much o f t he b i t t e r publ i c debat enever penet r at ed t hese surf ace ar gument s These c o r o l l a r y pro-p o s i t i o n s wer e, i n e s s e n c e , t echni ques or t he means Carm chael f e l tt o be most e f f e c t i v e f o r achi evi ng t he more basi c goal o f gr oupstrength They wer e t he devi ces f o r i ncreasi ng t he s i z e of t hegr oup, and f or i n t e n s i f y i n g i t s cohesi veness or sense of commonal i t y ndapar adox was nour i shed i n t he f a i l u r e bymany of Carm chaer ssupporters as wel l as h i s adver sar i es t o d i f f e r e n t i a t e bet ween t hesubstructure and surface ar gument I n a very f undament al way,Carm chaers i deas wer e msi nt erpret ed by bot h s i d e s Dur i ng t h i s per i od h i s c r i t i c s condemned hi mf o r al l egedl y r e -pudi at i ng t he democrat i c p r i n c i p l e s and go al s o f t he Amer i cansystem L a t e r , f er vent bl ackpower d i s c i p l e s canoni zed Sai ntSt o ke l y and s i f t e d t hr ough h i s i deas f o r t he key t o r edempt i on They a l s o l ooked a t t hose i d e as he had a r t i c u l a t e d bet ween May1966 and J anuar y 1967, t hose st atement s permeat ed w t h r h e t o r i cabout r e j e c t i n g t he basi c i n s t i t u t i o n s o f s o c i e t y I r o n i c a l l y , boths i de s sawi n h i s i deas a c a l l f o r t he dest ruct i on o f t he Amer i can s y s -t em al t hough dur i ng t h i s per i od Carm chael was i n e f f e c t advocat -i ng the ul t r a- Amer i cani smof equal i t y and f r eedom t hr ough i n t e r e s t -gr oup l i beral i sm Wth some g r a t i f i c a t i o n hehad not ed on severaloccasi ons t he newchangi ng mood among bl ack col l ege st udent swho had f o r too l ong been a conser vat i ve gr oup w t h st andar dHor at i o Al ger dreams, im ta t i ng whi t e Amer i ca at i t s wor st . l sSuch r emar ks wer e r eveal i ng The av ar i c i o us , compet i t i ve i n-

i s I bi d I t al i cs i n the ori gi nal .19 I bi d 84


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398 OURN LOF POLrr i cs, VOL 35 1973di vi dual i smwhi ch Hor at i o Al ger symbol i zes andwhi ch Car m chaelf ound s o det est abl e was l a r g e l y myth What Carm chael a c t u a l l yr e l i s h e d was t he devel opment of a p l u r a l i s t i c Hor at i o Al ger - i nbl ack He sought gr oup compet i t i on, but he r ef r ai ned f r om con-demni ng t h i s obvi ous m m c r y o f whi t e Amer i ca. Bl ack menmustbe r e a l i s t i c ; t hey must r ecogni ze t he pat h f ol l owed by t he I r i s hI t a l i a n s and J ews, and t hen pr agmat i cal l y char t t h e i r own course .Car m chael di d not t r anscend t he concept ual model of t he open,p l u r a l i s t i c soci et y and s e t t l e excl usi vel y on t he c ol o ni a l anal ogyu n t i l 1967 . Yet pr agmat i sm can be a subt er f uge. I t e s s e n t i a l l yl eaves i n t a c t t he pr evai l i ng par adi gm o f t he s o ci a l order I ndeed, Car m chael had been ext r emel y u n c r i t i c a l i n hi s en-dor sement o f t he gr oup theory o f p o l i t i c s ; f ewi f any o f t he under -l y i n g pr em ses o f t h i s concept wer e consi der ed . Hehadchampi onedt he gr oup theory o f p o l i t i c s - al t hough he was apparent l y unawar eo f t he controversy over t he val ue s t r u c t u r e on whi ch t h i s theory i ss a i d t o r es t . 2 For many c r i t i c s group theory i s subsystemor i ent ed ; i t can not handl e not i ons such as t he nat i onal i n t e r e s tor j us t i c e . I n f a c t t h i s theory deems t h a t t he publ i c i n t e r e s ti nel uct abl y appear s t hr ough an al most f e l i c i t o u s pr ocess o f gr oupc o n f l i c t F r i c t i o n i s muted because there e x i s t s a habi t back-ground o r agr eement on t he r u l es of t he game, and t he bypr oducto f t he compet i t i ve pr ocess w t hi n t h i s f r amewor k i s t he good andj u s t s o c i e t y Group t h e o r y i n other wor ds, favors t he s t a t u s quo att he most f undament al l e v e l s The group theory of p o l i t i c s ori n t e r e s t - g r o u p l i ber a l i s m i s i n onevery pr of ound sense t he pr ogeny20For some r espect ed di scussi on of thi s t heor y, i ncl udi ng several cr i t i ques,see Arthur Bent l ey, The Pr ocess of Government Chi cago Uni ver s i t y ofChi cago Press, 1908 ; Davi d Truman, The Governmental Process 1951 r e-pr i nt ed NewYork : Al f r ed A Knopf , 1962) ; Earl Latham The Group Basi sof Pol i t i cs I t haca, NY Cor nel l Uni ver s i t y Press, 1952) ; V O Key J r .P o l i t i c s Part i es and Pressure Groups NewYork: Thomas Y Crowel l Co 1964) ; J ohn Kenneth Gal br ai t h, Ameri can Capi t al i sm Boston HoughtonM f f l i n Co 1952) ; Robert Dahl , Pr ef ace t o Democrati c Theory Chi cagoThe Uni ver s i t y of Chi cago Press, 1956) ; Low , End of Li ber a l i sm Char l es

McCoy and J ohn Pl ayf ord, eds . Apol i t i cal Pol i t i cs New York: Thomas YCrowel l Co 1967) ; Henry S Kar i el , The Promse of Pol i t i cs Engl ewoodC l i f f s NJ . Pr ent i ce- Hal l , I nc . 1966) ; Mchael Parent i , Power and Pl ur a l -i sm V ewf romt he Bottom J our nal of P o l i t i c s 32 August 1970 , 501-530


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STOKELYC RMCH ELNDP N FRC NSM 399o f cont empor ary l i beral i sm Despi t e a f or saken connot at i on ofatomst i c i ndi vi dual i sm l i beral i smhas bequeat hed t o these model si t s very es sence- pr oces s Subst ant i ve goal s ar e subor di nat ed t oprocedure I t s means are i n l a r g e measur e i t s ends Group comp e t i t i o n has superseded i ndi vi dual compet i t i on, yet t he i nv i s i b l ehand s t i l l rei gns I n r e a l term, of c o u r s e , t he puri ty o f p l u r a l i s t i ccompet i t i on was d e f i l e d Thi s pecul i ar amal gamof c api t a l i s m,s tat i smand pl ural i sm whi ch emer ged f r om t he NewDeal ef f ect eda p o l i t i c a l equi l i br i umt h a t was at t ai ned at t he expense o f c e r t a i ngroups, p a r t i c u l a r l y bl ack Amer i cans .Even i n t he a b s t r a c t , however , coul d such p o l i t i c a l t hi nki ng beof hel p t o bl ack Amer i cans who wer e t o pose basi c quest i ons con-cer ni ng the substant i ve nature of j us t i ce, l eg i t i mac y, and s o v -erei gnt y ? Growng anom e i n t he bl ack communi t y woul d p r e -c i p i t a t e a f undament al quest i oni ng o f t he ul t i mat e goal s as wel l asprocedures wth i n t he Amer i can system Cer t a i n l y , Carm chaelcl ai med t h a t Amer i can s o c i e t y was i n d i r e need of t o t a l r evamp-i ng . The unanswer ed quest i on, t h e n , was how can t he processwhi ch hel ped t o f or ge t he i n e q u i t i e s andperver si ons of our soci et ya l s o became i t s s a vi o r Carm chael g l i b l y pr ocl ai med, whi l ewe endorse t he procedure o f group s o l i d a r i t y and i d e n t i t y f ort he purpose of a t t a i n i n g cert ai n goal s i n t he body p o l i t i c , t h i s doesnot mean t h a t bl ack peopl e shoul d s t r i v e f o r t he same ki nds o fr ewards i . e r e s u l t s ) obt ai ned by t he whi t e soci et y. 21 Carmchael ,however , f a i l e d t o expl ai n howt he same procedures woul d y i e l dd i f f e r e n t r e s u l t s At b e s t , he coul d poi nt t o t he communal s p i r i tof bl ack peopl e, the s p i r i t whi ch he sawmani f est ed i n t h e i r r e -f erences t o each other as s o ul - b r o t her and s o ul - s i s t e r . Whi l et h i s camarader i e mght r e f l e c t a q u a l i t a t i v e l y enr i ched i nt r agroupr e l a t i on s hi p, such symbol i sm o f f e r s l t t l hope t h a t i nt er groupdomnat i on and expl o i t a t i o n wi l l di sappear , l eadi ng t he way t o amorehumane s o c i a l order Fur t hermore, Carm chaer s i n t e l l ec t ua l l egacy cont ai ned an addi -t i o n a l compl i cat i on, a dubi ous caveat whi ch underm ned t he pl aus i -b i l i t y of hi s i n t e r p r e t a t i o n of t he group bas i s o f power c o n f l i c t s Hehad f l a t l y stated Amer i can pl ural i smqui ckl y becomes a monol i t hi c Carmchael andHaml ton B ack Power 7


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40 TH JOURN LOFPOLr1TCS voL 35, 1973s t r u c t u r e on i s s ues o f race .

When faced wi t h demands f r ombl ack

peopl e, the mul t i f acti on whi t es uni t e and pr esent a common f r o n t .Thi s i s es pec i a l l y t r u e when t he bl ack gr oup i nc r ea s es i n number . 2 2I n s h o r t , Car m chael had advocated t he pur sui t o f gr oup acti oni n a p l u r a l i s t i c s oc i et y al t hough he admtted t h a t t he s i n e quanon pr i nc i pl e o f t he gr oup theory o f p o l i t i c s was i noperabl e ; r a c e ,i n h i s scheme, was t he bas i s f o r s t a t i c , unf l uc t u at i ng, or categor i cgr oups . Thef l u x , movement , or i nt er change o f i ndi vi dual s bet weengr oups, whi ch i s supposedl y a preci pi t ant i n t he s h i f t i n g powerr e l a t i o ns hi ps among these same gr oups, i s termnated I mpenet r abl er a ci al bar r i er s do ex i s t Carmchael turned down a t h eo r e t i c aldead end The p l u r a l i s t s cont ent i on t h a t soci et y i s t he mosai co f gr oups whi ch compose i t t h a t s oc i et y , i n t he wor ds of apromn-ent gr oup t h eor i s t , i s . a s i n g l e uni ver se of gr oups whi ch combi ne , break, f e d e r a t e , and f o rmc o a l i t i o n s and c ons t e l l a t i ons of poweri n a f l ux o f r e s t l e s s al t er a t i ons i s deni ed 2 3 The advocacy ofs o l i d i f y i n g a categor i c gr oup i s at l eas t under st andabl e i f t he gr oupi n questi on i s d e f i n i t e l y a maj or i t y f act i on I n ot her wor ds, t h i sgr oup can expect t o secure a per manent posi t i on o f dom nance But t o c a l l , as Car m chael di d, f o r t he s o l i d i f i c a t i o n of a categor i cgr oup whi ch i s by any standard, a di s t i nc t mnor i t y, was t h eo r e t i c alsui ci de Gi ven Carmchael s premses, one m ght very wel l haveconcl uded t h a t bl acks- af t er r e t r eat i ng f r om t he bar gai ni ng pro-c e s s t o become a hi ghl y cohesi ve, s o l i d i f i e d gr oup possessi ng apr of ound sense o f gr oup i dent i t y- woul d f i n d upon t h e i r return t ot he p l u r a l i s t s arena t h a t they had or gani zed t hemsel ves i n t o aper manent ni che of power l essness .Carm chael , h i ms el f , seemed at t he t i me t o be awar e o f t h i sf l aw Thi s cogni zance became appar ent as he addr essed t he c r uc i a lquest i on of wher e coul d t he open s oc i e t y be s uc ces s f ul l y br eachedi f i n f a c t , bl ack s o l i d a r i t y had been achi eved Hi s di r ec t i ve waspr edi ctabl e ; p o l i t i c a l power , par t i c ul ar l y el ec t o r a l power i s mostvul ner abl e t o t he concerted e f f o r t s of a cohesi ve gr oup P o l i t i c a lpower hel d t he key t o s el f - de t e r m nat i o n, and w t h i t t he con-s t r a i n t s o f econom c bondage m ght be br oken However , Car -

22 I b i d . 723 Latham Group Basi s of P o l i t i c s , 49


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STOKELYC RMCH ELN N FRC NSM 401m chael f aced a di l emma wi t h hi s choi ce o f p o l i t i c a l model sf or exampl e, Lowndes Count y Most of hi s ana l y s i s was gear ed t o t he muni ci pal and count yl e v e l , t o s e t t i n g up i ndependent p o l i t i c a l p a r t i e s i n sout her n c i t i e sand count i es- par t i cul ar l y t he 11 count i es i n t he bl ack be l t ofAl abama where bl acks i n 1966 had a pot ent i al vot i ng maj or i t y Fur t hermor e, he was s t e a d f a s t l y comm t t ed at t h i s t i me t o maj or i t yr u l e Carm chael adamant l y demanded bl ack p o l i t i c a l cont r olwher e bl ack men wer e i n a maj or i t y But i f bl acks di d not haveamaj or i t y? To t h i s quest i on he offered a r epl y whi chwas vagueand r a t h e r i nadequate Where Negr oes l ack a ma j o r i t y , bl ackpower means pr oper r epr esent at i on and shar i ng of cont r ol 24 Thi sr esponse t o a c r i t i c a l pr obl em i s f at uous because as one moves f r omt he smal l er to t he l a r g e r p o l i t i c a l u n i t s t he chance o f f ashi oni nga bl ack maj or i t y decr eases P o l i t i c a l s ubdi v i s i o ns , be t hey c i t y ,count y, or even s t a t e , do not e x i s t i n a power vacuum but Car -m chael was t r e a t i n g themi n t h i s way Seemngl y, he desi r ed t heana l y t i c al l uxur y o f vi ewi ng l o ca l u n i t s as i ndependent , s e l f - c o n -t ai ned p o l i t i c a l f i ef doms But t he pr obl em of power r e l a t i o ns hi p s

bet ween p o l i t i c a l u n i t s i n t he f eder al syst emwas and i s a p e r s i s t -i ng and naggi ng r e a l i t y whi ch cannot be si mpl y wi shed awayWhen asked i n an e a r l y i nt er vi ew what he pl anned beyondLowndes Count y, Carm chael r e p l i e d , Ri ght nowwe r e concen-t r a t i n g on t he count y l e v e l I f e e l st r ongl y about or gani zi ng ont he l o c a l l e v e l At t he s t a t e and f eder al l e v e l t hi ngs get conf usedand you have t o make t oo many compr om ses . 25

But i t i s notsi mpl y a mat t er o f conf usi on or even a quest i on of maki ng compromses Carm chael was keenl y awar e t h a t as p o l i t i c a l bound-a r i e s expand, t he s t at us o f bl acks as a mnor i ty gr oup becomesmore pr onounced, or , t o be mor e bl unt , Carm chael knew therewas an i nver se r e l a t i o n s h i p bet ween t he s i z e o f a p o l i t i c a l uni t andt he pr ospect o f t ha t un i t cedi ng t o bl ack p o l i t i c a l control f ewe x c e r p t s f r om hi s work wi l l hel p t o i l l umnat e t h i s d i f f i c u l t y i nhi s ana l ys i s , e s p e c i a l l y i n l i g h t of hi s premses concerni ng t hegr oup bas i s of p o l i t i c s

4Car m chael , Wat We Want , 55Benson, I nt er v i ew wi t h NewSNCC Chai r man, 8 I t a l i c s added


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402 THE JOURNALOF POLMCS, voL 35, 1973At one p o i n t , he i s di scuss i ng t he need f o r i ndependent bl acko r gan i z at i o ns , h i s r u l e o f p o l i t i c s , and he r emar ks w t h someannoyance The standard ar gument presented agai nst i ndependentp o l i t i c a l organi zat i ons i s `But you are onl y 10 cannot seet he rel evance of t h i s observat i on s i n c e no one i s tal ki ng aboutt aki ng over t he country but t aki ng control over our own communi t i es . 2 8 He g l i b l y avoi ds t he i s s u e , because t he r e a l i s s u e i snot whet her a nat i on- w de mnor i ty o f 11 t o 13 percent can takeover t he country but whet her members o f t hi s mnor i ty can a c t u a l l ygai n e f f e c t i v e control even i n those smal l er p o l i t i c a l u n i t s wherethey are a maj or i t y I t was not a pr obl em compl et el y f orei gn t oCarm chael J u l i a n Bond hi s co- wor ker i nSNCC, was t w ce preven-t ed f rom r epresenti ng hi s At l ant a c o n s t i t u e n t s i n t he s t a t e l e g i s l at u r e And Carm chael was wel l awar e t h a t a whi t e maj or i t y i nt he s t a t e o f Al abamahad t hwar t ed t he po t e nt i a l f or bl ack control i nMacon Count y where bl acks hadbecome a vot i ng maj or i ty 2 7 I n-deed i n t he paragraph whi ch f ol l ows t he above quot at i on Car-m chael i n d i r e c t l y al l udes t o t hi s super sedi ng capaci ty and i n sodoi ng underscores t he weakness of h i s own assumpt i ons about t hef e a s i b i l i t y o f e x e r c i s i n g bl ack control on t he l o c a l l evel He adds

The f a c t i s t hat theNegropopul ati on 10 o r no t , i s very s t r a t e g i c a l l ypl aced because- i roni cal l y- of segr egat i on. What i s a l s o t rue i st h a t Negr oes have never been abl e t o u t i l i z e t he f u l l vot i ng pot ent i alo f our numbers Wherewe coul d v o t e , t he case has al ways beent h a t t he whi te pol i t i c al machi ne stacks nd gerrymanders thepol i t i c al subdi vi si ons i n egro nei ghborhoods so the true voti ngstrength i s never ref l ected i n pol i ti cal strength2

Fur t hermor e t he ger r ymander i s but one of many t echni quest he whi t e maj or i t y coul d empl oy t o d i s s i p a t e pot enti al bl ack p o l i t i -c a l control Ref ormof t he el ec t o r a l col l ege t h a t i s , abol i shmentof t he uni t r u l e ) , revenue s h a r i n g , and t he st r engt heni ng ofr egi onal gover nment ar e onl y a f ewo f t he devi ces f o r underm ni ngwhat Carm chael r ef er s t o as t he s t r a t e g i c pl acement o f Negroes-a r ef erence t o t he gr owi ng concentr at i on of bl acks i n several26Carm chael Toward Bl ack Li berati on 927Carm chael and Ham l t on B ack Power, chap 28 Carm chael TowardBl ack Li berati on 9

I t a l i c s added


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STOKELYRM H ELNDPAN AFRICANSM 40maj or c i t i e s The c r i t i c a l quest i on i s whet her Carmchael s s chemewoul dpl ace bl acks i n t he webof ever- w deni ng, concent r i c p o l i t i c a lsystem t o whi ch whi t es have recourse whenever t h e i r maj or i t y i st hr eat ened Agai n, Carm chael i s awar e of t h i s d i f f i c u l t y and i sf l u s t e r e d by hi s i n a b i l i t y t o deal w t h i t as t he f ol l ow ng excerptf r oma s ympos i um s o sharpl y reveal s Q I d l i k e t o ask St okel y what strategy would SNCC take o rwhat would happen t o bl ack power i f Gover nor Wal l ace and hi sgover nment abol i shed t he count y uni t systemMR CARMCHAEL Wel l , i t seems t o me t he quest i on i s n o t ewhat we wi l l do the quest i on i s what you wi l l do What wi l la l l t he f reedom l ovi ng peopl e i n t h i s country do i f he does that?So, you d say t h i s would be a c r i s i s ?MR CARMCHAEL No, i t wi l l not be a c r i s i s because I knowwhat wi l l happen because I mbl ack What I msayi ng i s what wi l lwhi t e peopl e i n t h i s count r y do?Q

I maski ng youwhat SNCCwoulddo

MR CARMCHAEL What SNCC would do? Wel l we won tt e l l you you j u s t wai t and see The quest i on i s not what we wi l ldo, but t he quest i on t h a t peopl e wi l l have t o r a i s e i n t he i r mnds i s i fi n f a c t t hey ve l e t Wal l ace rei gn l o , these many years and l e t East l andre i gn l o , these many years and a l l other r a c i s t s i n gover nment i nt he democr at i c system what wi l l they do i f he takes a step t oabol i sh candi dat es who ve been el ected t hrough your democr at i cprocess? What wi l l you do t o uphol d your democr acy? Not whatwi l l we do because t h e r e s not much choi ce f or u s 29Carm chael was s tymed hi s recourse t o t he a l l t oo f a m l i a r weknow- but - won t - t el l chorus i s i l l - f e i g n e d Hi s personal j i b e a t t hewhi t e quest i oner i s perhaps mos t reveal i ng o f t he f r a g i l i t y o f hi sposi t i on G ven hi s premses about p o l i t i c s a s t he c o n f l i c t of groupi n t e r e s t s , Carmchael s qu e s t i o n , What wi l l youdo? i s i r o n i c F i r s t ,i t i nvol ves an appeal t o consci ence whi ch Carm chael had al r eadydi smssed a s i r r e l e v a n t nonsense i n p o l i t i c a l a f f a i r s More i mp o r t a n t l y , hi s quer y seems t o i mpl y t h a t t he whi t e quest i onershoul d be ant agoni st i c or a t l e a s t a t odds w t h Gover nor Wal l aceand ot her r a c i s t s who woul d t amper w t h p o l i t i c a l proceduresi n order t o d i l u t e bl ack p o l i t i c a l cont rol a t t he l o c a l l e ve l Butsuch an assumpt i on i s r e a l l y pr ecl uded by Carmchael s premses

29 Carm chael , Tal k i ng About I t , 71


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404 rHE JOURNALOF POLMCS VOL 35, 1973The que s t i o ne r s gr oup a f f i l i a t i o n andul t i mat e l o y a l t y has al readybeen pr edet erm ned by v i r t u e of t he common c h a r a c t e r i s t i c heshares w t h i t s ot her member s, whi t eness Carm chael appears t ohave l ocked hi msel f i n t o a Cal hounesque s t r a i g h t j a c k e t , but hehas no k e y , no doct ri ne compar abl e t o t he concurrent maj or i t yf or escapi ng t he c ons t r a i nt s of hi s m nori t y pr edi cament Ost en-s i b l y , c o a l i t i o n s coul d have been t he devi ce by whi ch Carm chaelt r anscended t he m nor i t y di l emma Y e t , when he f i n i s h e d l ayi ngt he ground r u l es f or t he f ormat i on of v i a b l e c oa l i t i ons , i t wasdoubt f ul t h a t any gr oup was l e f t t o coal esce w t h The onl y p r o s -pect i ve c o a l i t i o n t h a t Carm chael envi si oned a s accept abl e t o uswas one uni t i ng poor bl acks andpoor whi t es However , he addedt he seem ngl y obvi ous reservat i on t h a t t he actual prospect s f or t hef ormat i on of t h i s c o a l i t i o n i n t he near f ut ur e wer e negl i gi bl e I twas a purel y academ c proposi t i on On t he ot her hand, Car-m chael a l s o i n s i s t e d that i t i s a f a l l a c i o u s assumpt i on t h a t avi abl e c o a l i t i o n canbe e f f e c t e d bet ween t he p o l i t i c a l l y andeconom -c a l l y secure and t he p o l i t i c a l l y and econom cal l y i nsecure . 30Taken t o g e t h e r , these two caveat s al one wer e exhaust i ve they pre-cl uded t he p o s s i b i l i t y t h a t any c o a l i t i o n woul d be f ormed Ofcourse, Carm chael s skept i ci sm of c o a l i t i o n f ormat i on r emai ns un-di m ni shed When resi gni ng f r om t he Bl ack Pant her Party i nt he summer of 1969 he c i t e d hi s concern over t he Pant hers pre-mat ur e a l l i a n c e w t h whi t e r a d i c a l s . )

I VSuch was t he i nt e l l ec t ua l l egacy l e f t f or ot her bl ack- powert hi nkers t o wrest l e w t h and bui l d upon Seeki ng gui dance theywoul d turn t o Carm chael , but a t t he nexus of Carm chael spol em cal d i d a c t i c s they woul d encount er a l odes t a r of consi der-abl e conf usi on31

Carm chael h i ms e l f , however , si mpl y l eaped t o30 Ca r m c ha el and Ha m l t on, Bl ack Power 6031See, f or exampl e , t he set of r esol ut i ons t hat emer ged f r o m t he Bl a c k

Power Conf e r ence , hel d i n Newar k i mmedi a t e l y a f t e r t he r e b e l l i o n i n t h a t c i t y One r e ad s t he vi r u l ent condemna t i on of t he i mper i a l i s t government of t heUni t e d S t a t e s , and t h e n t u r n s i n as t oni shment t o r e a d under t he r u b r i c ofe c on om c and p o l i t i c a l devel opment s p e c i f i c pr opos a l s whi ch a r e i n essence


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STOKELYC RMCH ELN N FRC NSM 4 0 , 5t he gospel of Fanon a f t e r r e a l i z i n g he had been st r ai ght j acket edby hi s own r h e t o r i c The change came s wi f t l y F i r s t , there wast he di smayi ng e l e c t i o n i n November 1966 none of t he Fr eedomP a r t y s seven candi dat es was el ect ed i n Lowndes Count y month l a t e r a t SNCC s conf er ence, t he f a ct i ona l i n f i g h t i n g , normal l yc h a r a c t e r i s t i c of such s t a f f meet i ngs, seemed even more pr onounced md t he soul - searchi ng r eassessment s and at mospher e of ennui Car -mchael mused al oud, We r e i n a bi nd Howdo we prog rambl ack power ? nd then came t he unpr ecedent ed damC Powel la f f a i r i n J anuar y I t was a wat er shed f or t he a s p i r i n g a r c h i t e c t sof bl ack power They vi ewed t he r e l a t i v e ease w t h whi ch t her a k i s h , bl unt l y- def i ant Powel l was st r i pped of hi s chai r manshi p andthen excl uded f r omt he Ni net i et h Congr ess Whi tepower was mani -f e s t bl ack huml i at i on hadbeen guar ant eed w t h t he s h i f t t o amoreencompass i ng p o l i t i c a l ar ena Despi t e bl ack cont r ol of t he ei gh-t eent h congr essi onal d i s t r i c t , t he over whel m ng suppor t of Powel l i nbl ack communi t i es across t he na t i on, and t he u n c o n s t i t u t i o n a l i t y oft he e xc l us i on, t he whi t e maj or i t y had i t s wayThereafter, Car m chael sought an i nver s i on of t he i l l - mat chedwhi t e- bl ack control r e l a t i o n s h i p by ext endi ng t he ar ena of con-f l i c t i n i t i a l l y there was t he r eput ed s o l i d a r i t y w t h t he Thi r dWor l d, f ol l owed shor t l y by hi s comm t ment t o Pan- Af r i cani smGroup compet i t i on coul d be i nt er nat i onal i zed once bl ack Amer i -cans r ecogni zed t he ne ce s s i t y of hooki ng up w t h t he 900 m l l i o nbl ack peopl e i n t he wor l d today . Once t he st r uggl e bec omes i n-t er n at i ona l , t he A c h i l l e s heel i n hi s i n i t i a l bl ackpower f or mul at i on( t h a t i s t he p o s i t i n g of monol i t hi c or cat egor i c bl ack or whi t egr oups) i s ne ut r a l i z ed , or a t l ea st t he pot ent i al f or t r anscendi ng t hedi l emma i s pr esent Hi s advocacy of t he Thi r d Worl d st r uggl e and i t s concom t antwar s of nat i onal l i b e r a t i o n came agai nst a backdr op of f l amngAmer i can c i t i e s post ur i ng at t h a t t i me over g u e r i l l a war f ar e wasde r i gueur But t he magnet i smof t h i s r e l a t i v e l y unf ocused d oc t r i ne ,t he ext ent t o whi ch i t coul d w n t he al l egi ance of t he masses ofbased on some f undament al i deol ogi c al t enet s of t he Amer i can system Cont i nuati ons Comm t t ee, Bl ack Power Mani f est o and Resol ut i ons, mmeogr aphed, J ul y 1967, 1- 7


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406 THE JOURNALOF POLI TICS, voL 35 1973bl ack Amer i cans and enhance t h e i r gr oup i d e n t i t y was quest i on-abl e Pan- Af r i cani sm wi t h t he hover i ng, myst i cal i mage o f Mot herAf r i ca a t i t s c o r e was anot her mat t er I n J anuar y, 1969 Car-m chael l e f t t he Uni t ed S t a t e s f o r a f our t een- mont h s t a y i n Af r i ca .Most i mpor t ant l y, he had t he oppor t uni t y t o st udy wi t hDr . KwameNkr umah, t he man he consi der ed t he most b r i l l i a n t i n t he wor l dt oday . As Carm chael woul d l a t e r r e c a l l . i t became c l e a r t ome t h a t t he bl ack communi tywas headi ng f or p o l i t i c a l chaos knewt h a t di dn t have t he answers, so i t was s i l l y f o r me t o stayhere and keep r appi ng about what I di dn t know Why shoul d s t a y here t o get up on t e l e v i s i o n and yel l a l o t of nonsense? I twoul d onl y cause conf usi on i n my communi t y I don t want t o dot h a t Conf usi on i s t he g r e a t e s t enemy o f revol ut i on . 32Short l y a f t e r arr i vi ng i n A f r i c a Carm chael began voi ci ng hi sent husi asmf or Pan- Af r i cani sm Wth i n one y e a r i n hi s f i r s t maj orst at ement on t he s ub j ec t he prof essed h i s unequi vocal convi ct i ont h a t f o r bl ack peopl e i n t he Uni t ed S t a t e s our i deol ogy must bePan- Af r i cani sm not hi ng e l s e 33 I n t h i s l andmar k a r t i c l e and sub-sequent works on t he t o p i c he out l i ned an ambi t i ous and l ong-range bl uepr i nt of ul t i mat e go al s whi ch c e r t a i n l y r a i s e d morequest i ons t han wer e answered concerni ng t he means of i mpl emen-t a t i o n . Not hi ng short o f t he u n i f i c a t i o n o f Af r i ca i s t he f i n a l ob-j e c t i v e . Andby u n i f i c a t i o n he t r a v e l s consi derabl y beyond a f e d -e r a t i o n i s t scheme . . . youhave one s t a t e - A f r i c a Ever ybody speakst he same l anguage, one government , one army 34 Thus, i t i ssomewhat vexi ng when Carm chael , t o abet h i s audi ence i n f l es h-i ng out t he d e t a i l s of hi s Pan- Af r i cani st v i s i o n r e f e r s hi s readerso r l i s t e n e r s t o t he wri t i ngs of t he do c t r i ne s el der and emnentspokesmen Us u a l l y he recommends Geor ge Padmor e s Pan-Afri -cani smor Communism and works by or aboutE DuBoi s,Mar cus Gar vey and Dr Nkrumah 3 5 Y e t cont ai ned t her e i n t he3 Carmchael Stokel y Speaks, 18533 Carm chael , Pan-Afri cani smLand and Power, Bl ack Schol ar, 1 No-vemer 1969 36-4334 i b i d . 41.35 See, f or exampl e E. B DuBo s, The Soul s of Bl ack Fo k Greenwch,Conn Fawcett Publ i cat i ons, I nc 1961 ; WE. B . DuBoi s Memori al I ssue,Freedomways, 5 Wnter 1965) ; EdmundCronon, Bl ack Moses : The Story of


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STOKELYCARMCHAELNANAFRCANSM 407pri nci pl es of Pan-Afri cani smwhi ch real l y have been nurturedthroughout t hi s century, retai n an amorphous qual i ty; workabl esol uti ons for surmounti ng the very real obstacl es to i t s real i zati onhave not been suppl i ed Carmchael s sol e i nnovati on had beenthe proposal that concrete acti on be taken to restore the deposedKwame Nkrumah to power i n Ghana Th s he bel i eved was themost pl ausib e f i r s t step toward the uni fi cati on of Afri ca-i t woul dprovi de a haven, the necessary l and base fromwhi ch the neo-col oni al i s t regi ms i n other states coul d be expunged Certai nl ythi s proposal was sketchy at best 36 Only the most superf i ci altreatmnt i s gi ven the l ong l i s t of external andi ndi genous cl eavageswhi ch Bal kani ze andh nder the l ong sought af ter dreamof uni tyi n the conti nent Some of the enervati ng di vi si ons surfacedopen-l y i n the bi tter cl ashes duri ng the J une 1971 meti ng of theOrgani zati on of Afri can Uni ty, hel d i n Addi s Ababa I n a sweep-i nggesture of f ai th, andi n wordsheretofore uncharacteri sti c of h mCarmchael prophesi es the success of Pan-Afri cani smbecause i t i s wi tten i n the wnd-the hi stori cal forces can not be

Marcus Garvey and t he Uni ver sal Negro Imrovemnt Associ at i on (Madi sonUni ver si t y of Wsconsi n Press, 1955 ; KwameNkrumah, Consci enci smNewYork Month y Revi ew Press, 1970) ; Bob Fi tch and Mary Oppenheimr,Ghana Endof An I l l us i on NewYork Month y Revi ewPress, 1968) ; JamsR Hooker, Bl ack Revol uti onary George Padmore s Path FromCommuni smt o Pan-Af ri cani smNewYork Fr eder i ck A Pr aeger , I nc 1967

36To date, Carmchael remai ns publ i cl y si l ent about D Nkrumah s deathandwhat t he absence of the man cal l ed Osagyefo or Redeemr mans f orhi s Pan- Af r i cani st bl uepr i nt I t woul d seemt hat t he voi d l e f t by Nkrumah,who di ed i n exi le i n Apr i l 1972, i s one wh ch very much guts Carmchael sprogram I n part, Car m chael s bl i the treatment of t he structural and at -ti t udi nal r oadbl ocks to Pan-Af ri cani sm st ems fromhi s preoccupati on w th t hegr eat man i n hi stor y : W never understand hi stor y because hi stor y i sal ways moved forward by a si ngl e person Car m chael , Pan- Af r i cani sm40 Appar ent l y, Carmchael hoped t hat i n the Af r i can cont i nent Nkrumahwoul d pl ay a ro le pl aci ng h mon t he l i s t of st at esmen wh ch i ncl udes the l i kesof Mao Tse- t ung, Ho Ch -mnh, Char l es De Gaul l e, and Wnston Churchi l l At t he momnt, no one has the stature t o r epl ace Nkrumah i n Carmchael sschem except perhaps Sekou Tour 6, pr esi dent of t he West Af r i can nat i on,Gui nea And r ecent l y, even Pr es i dent Tour er seem to be l ooki ng i nward,consol i dat i ng hi s posi t i on af t er the abor t i ve i nvas i on attempt by al l egedmer cenar i es andGui nean exi l es i n November 1970


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4 8 TH JOURN LOF POLI TICS voL 35, 1973st opped However , i f t he ar gument here i s c o r r e c t , then i t i snot surpri si ng t h a t Carmchael gi ve s such shal l ow t r eatment t o t hevery d i f f i c u l t probl ems i mpedi ng Af r i can uni t y Despi t e hi s prof essed l ong- range v i s i on , hi s cont ent i on thatt he f i g h t f o r l i b e r a t i o n wi l l requi re at l eas t a generat i on o f s t r u g -g l e , Carmchael has not shaken f r e e f rom t he dead wei ght o f hi se a r l i e r p o l i t i c a l t heori zi ng H s Pan- Af r i cani sm i s capt i ve t o t hegr oup theory o f p o l i t i c s I t l o o ks backward t o t he task o f r emedy-i ng d e f i c i e nc i e s i n hi s previ ous i deol ogi cal scheme, not t o conf ront -i ng the harsh r e a l i t i e s o f t he present and f uture When he o u t -l i n e s f or bl ack Amer i cans t he concret e s t e p s they must nowt a k e ,hi s advi ce i s s t r i k i n g l y remni scent of f ormer, and presumabl y byhi s own admssi on, i nadequat e decl arat i ons I n hi s address onPan- Af r i cani sm del i vered at Mor ehouse Col l ege i n Apri l 1970,Carmchael b r i e f l y summar i zed hi s i deol ogy and t ac t i c s Af r i cabecomes our p r i o r i t y , number one We seek f o r uni t y w t hi n ourcommuni t y, number two We seek t o t a k e over the p o l i t i c a l i n-s t i t u t i o n s w t h i n our communi t y, number t h r e e , and we seek t odevel op i ndependent economc bases wher ever po ss i b l e , s t a r t i n gw t h our organi zat i ons 37 He had si mpl y superi mposed t he goalof Af r i can u n i t y , or at mni mum support f o r revol ut i onary s t a t e si n Af r i c a, on t op of hi s ol d l i s t of ob j e c t i ves I n other words, t he basi c concept o f p o l i t i c s i s l e f t i n t ac t ; groupcompet i t i on r emai ns as i t s essence Whi t e Amer i ca, he cont i nuest o mai nt ai n, i s a monol i t hi c structure on t he i s s u e of r ace Whatweknowabout whi t e f o l k s i s t h a t t h e y r e al ways uni t ed around onequest i on- us . I n Carm chaers most expansi ve f ormul at i on t h i sconf ront at i on i s i nt erpreted as i n ev i t a b l y p i t t i n g Europeans agai nstnon- Europeans . 3s Onl y now, by ext endi ng t he sphere o f t he s t r u g -gl e , Carmchael has compensat ed f o r two gl ari ng weaknesses i nhi s o r i g i na l f ormul at i on 1) t he pr obl em o f g r o s s numer i cal i n-f e r i o r i t y w t h i n t he f r amewor k o f cat egor i c gr oup c o n f l i c t i sn u l l i f i e d ; and 2) t he acqui si t i on of soverei gn control over the

37 Carmchael , St okel y Speaks, 238 Dur i ng a di scussi on w t h several bl ack a r t i s t s at t he Pan- Af ri can Cul t ural

Fest i val i n Al g i e r s , Carm chael f l a t l y decl ared t h a t a c o a l i t i o n bet ween Russi aand the Uni ted States was al ready a r e a l i t y DonL Lee I nt ervi ews St okel yCarmchael , J our nal o Bl ack Poetry, 1 Pan- Af r i can I s s u e , 1970- 71) , 73


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STOKELYC RMCH ELN N FRC NSM 40v i t a l l and base becomes r e l a t i v e l y more pl ausi bl e- Ghana be-comes t he sur r ogat e f or t he sout hern bl ack be l t Carmchael s hi gh regard f or hi s own p o l i t i c a l acumen s nos e c r e t What he has done, i n e f f e c t s t o el i mnate the f l aws i n h i sp o l i t i c a l i deol ogy, enhanci ng t he l o g i c and i n t e r n a l consi st encyo f hi s pr oposal s, by f ur t her r emovi ng hi mel f f rom t he c o n f l i c t she wi shes cont r ol l ed he gap bet ween t hought and act i on i swi dened ; t he pr of essed p o l i t i c a l i deol ogy becomes l e s s i deol ogi cal(that s l e s s a c t i o n - r e l a t ed f or t he masses of bl ack Amer i ca) I r o n i c a l l y by ext endi ng t he geogr aphi cal and t empor al di mensi onso f t he c o n f l i c t Carmchael has pl aced hi mel f i n t he posi t i on oft hose he once c r i t i c i z e d ne s i g n i f i c a n t demand of t he bl ack-power movement he l ed i n 1966 was t he c a l l f or new, audaci ousbl ack l eader s commt t ed t o secur i ng i mmedi at e and t angi bl e r e-war ds f o r t h e i r brothers Now however , he seems t o be appeal -i ng f or t r u s t and f a i t h i n t hose l eader s who ar e c o r r e c t l y r eadi ngt he wi nd of h i s t o r y Apparent l y, he deems t t o be a t i me abovea l l f o r p o l i t i c a l educat i on I f conf usi on i s i ndeed t he g r e a t e s tenemy of bl ack peopl e a s Carmchael c l a i ms t hen hi s own i deason Pan- Af r i cani sm need t o be subj ect ed t o a l o ng h ar d c r i t i c a ll ook

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