August 31, 1935 - Eldridge Cleaver
Cleaver occupies an uncomfortable place in the history of American radicalism — a figure whose crimes against women he later framed, in his own writing, as politically motivated acts, a claim that drew both serious engagement and fierce rejection. His role as Minister of Information for the Black Panther Party gave him genuine ideological influence, while his 1968 fugitive status and years in exile marked a period when the internal fractures he helped create were already eroding the organization. The arc from convicted rapist to celebrated radical intellectual to conservative Republican convert resists easy categorization, which is part of what makes him historically significant.
From Wikipedia
Leroy Eldridge Cleaver (August 31, 1935 – May 1, 1998) was an African American writer and political activist. He was an early leader of the Black Panther Party, serving as Minister of Information and, while in exile, head of the International Section of the Panthers. As editor of the official Panthers' newspaper, The Black Panther, Cleaver's influence on the direction of the party was rivaled only by founders Huey P. Newton and Bobby Seale.
In 1958, Cleaver was convicted of a series of crimes including assault and attempted murder, and he eventually served time in Folsom and San Quentin prisons before being released on parole in 1966. Cleaver read widely in prison and began writing. His work was noticed by Edward Keating of Ramparts, who advocated for his release and published his prison essays. Upon Cleaver's release in 1966, Keating hired him to work for Ramparts and he began his work with the Panthers. In 1968, Cleaver published Soul on Ice, a collection of essays that was met with both praise and condemnation due to its searing commentary on American society and its provocative assertions.
- Last updated on .