The Black Panthers 1968

Black Panthers 1968: Kathleen Cleaver

Pirkle Jones: Audience listening to Eldridge Cleaver speak, on the campus of the University of California, Berkeley, CA, October 3, 1968; selenium toned gelatin silver print; 13 1/2 x 19 1/2 in.

In April, Kathleen Cleaver, appearing at BAM/PFA with the photographer Pirkle Jones, said, “This is quite amazing, that here we are, of all places, back in Berkeley, right down the street, together again....And all those people you saw pouring out into the streets in October (1968) were really filled with a sense of hope and purpose and determination, because we really did believe, we really did believe this, that the revolution was on the way, that it was coming, it was imminent.” The photography exhibition, on view in the museum’s Theater Gallery, and the accompanying April film series have been warmly received by the community, showing that there is still a fascination with, and much to be learned from, this special time in our history.

Support for this exhibition is provided by the Consortium for the Arts, the Graduate School of Journalism, and the Doreen B. Townsend Center for the Humanities at UC Berkeley.