The Mulford Act

[Prophet]

I have an on-the-fence friend who has recently taken an interest in the history surrounding the Black Panthers and the civil rights movement. I've been reading about the Mulford Act and how its intended purpose was to disarm the Black Panthers but it affected everyone across the board. I'm wondering how I can frame this period in history as a backdrop for his interest in the topic, or whether it would be a good idea for me to do so at all. It is the Black Panthers, after all. He lauds the group's original purpose but is disappointed by their descent into violence.

I'm still doing my research but thought that this topic might be of some interest to other THR members. I did a search and it seems that the phrase "Mulford Act" has come up in threads so I'm going to read those too, but no dedicated threads. Feel free to add your thoughts and I'll continue to post up what I discover.

EDIT; Here is a post by forum member Zoogster that I found; http://www.thehighroad.org/showpost.php?p=8303105&postcount=7

EDIT; also found a thread dealing with the Black Panthers. Currently reading it for inspiration. Input still welcome.

 

[alsaqr]

I have an on-the-fence friend who has recently taken an interest in the history surrounding the Black Panthers and the civil rights movement. I've been reading about the Mulford Act and how its intended purpose was to disarm the Black Panthers but it affected everyone across the board.

CA politician David Don Mulford had his draft act waiting in the wings. When CA governor Ronald Reagan and the CA legislature got scared of the Black Panthers the Mulford Act was sprung on gunowners.

 

[Prophet]

Okay, so here's the big question; did the law actually do anything to stop the Panthers from carrying arms or did the continue to do so? That's what I'm trying to determine now.

 

[gossamer]

Article from The Atlantic regarding various groups' attempts to control guns (or not).

http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2011/09/the-secret-history-of-guns/308608/

 

[USAF_Vet]

The Black Panthers were initially intended as a civil rights group, formed somewhat like a militia unit. They carried arms, legally, so that their rights would not be infringed. Early Civil Rights demonstrations had been violently dispersed by the police.


They descended into different factions, some of them becoming more threatening than others, and the media started targeting them as a criminal organization. In some cases, this was true. The Mulford act, targeted to strip them of their carry rights, pushed more and more members of the group over the edge into criminal territory.

After Mulford, cops began to target blacks in obvious discrimination. Most of whom were not affiliated with the Black Panther movement. The Black Panthers did come forth, armed illegally, to help protect their communities from dirty cops. This, of course, was all the media needed to really smear their image and brand them a criminal group.