Richard Aoki was born in San Leandro, California to Japanese-American parents. During WWII, he and his family were interned at a camp in Topaz, Utah for three years. During the 60s and 70s he developed a militant ideology in response to the injustice he faced simply because he was Japanese.
After his discharge, Aoki settled in West Oakland where he encountered African-Americans from the south that shared their experience with acts of bigotry. He, as he put it, "began putting two and two together and saw that people of color in this country really get unequal treatment and aren't presented with many opportunities for gainful employment."
After high school, Aoki served in the U.S. Army for eight years. However, as the war in Vietnam began to escalate, he decided against a military career and, following his discharge, enrolled in Merritt Community College.
While there, he met and grew close to Huey Newton and Bobby Seale, founding members of the Black Panther Party. The organization was founded one month after Aoki transferred to UC Berkeley and he subsequently became one of the first members of the Black Panther Party, eventually being promoted to the position of "Field Marshall." He was the only Asian American member that had a formal leadership position.
As field marshall, he used his military experience to help members defend the community. He helped develop "shotgun patrols" which involved following the police as they patrolled neighborhoods in Oakland and chronicled arrests with cameras and tape recorders.
In addition, at Berkeley, Aoki established the Asian American Political Alliance that supported the Panthers and opposed the Vietnam war. He participated in local labor struggles on behalf of groups like Filipino Americans who worked in agricultural fields. He also reached out to other radical student groups and formed the Third World Council that sought to create a Third World College where they could have classes that were relevant to their communities. They staged a strike that lasted an entire academic quarter that ended when UC Berkeley agreed to create an ethnic studies department. Aoki was one of the first to teach an ethnic studies courses there.
He continued to teach and remained politically active while his participation in the Black Panther Party waned. He died in 2009 at the age of 70.
After his death, Seale told the Contra Costa Times that Aoki "was one consistent, principled person, who stood up and understood the international necessity for human and community unity in opposition to oppressors and exploiters."
Sources:
https://www.thoughtco.com/asian-american-black-panther-richard-aoki-2834877
https://aaregistry.org/story/richard-aoki-brilliant-panther/
I thought that this was a very inspiring post that really gave more insight into civil rights activists that weren't just about African-Americans. One questions I have is how he originally got involved in the Black Panther Party and how he managed to receive a formal position in this organization?
ReplyDeleteIt is very interesting how a person would go to such an extent as to devote his entire life to free a different ethnic group from their sufferings. This provided greater insight for the development of the civil rights movement in the United States. The fact that a person who was completely ignorant of colored people's sufferings could immediately resonate with them and join their fight for freedom demonstrated just how insecure Americans were, and how cultural diversity emancipated America from white supremacy.
ReplyDeleteI really liked this post. I haven't read much about Asian American activism so I found this post very interesting. I also found it interesting that Mr. Aoki held a leadership position in the black panthers. Overall, a very well written and eye opening post.
ReplyDeleteThis was an interesting post. We don't often hear about the roles of other races in the civil rights movement. I appreciate that you talked about how the conditions he was placed under in internment shaped his views and political stances. It is important to make those connections!
ReplyDeleteI liked this post because it gave me a look into the civil-rights scene in California during this time. It's interesting that people who come from different cultures could unite over a common cause. In addition, I thought that their idea of creating a "Third World College" was pretty ingenious way of fighting White Supremacy. By making people of color feel proud of their culture, they could finally feel that they had an equal place in society as Whites did.
ReplyDeleteI think it's very interesting that an Asian-American held a position of power in a movement for black rights. Also, I liked how you talked about his experiences as Japanese WW2 helped him connect with other people of color.
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