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The Color of Water " the Effects of Black Panthers on the Life of Black Americans"

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The Color of Water " the Effects of Black Panthers on the Life of Black Americans"
"Black Power", the word alone raises an abundance of controversial issues. Black power was a civil rights movement led by the black panthers which addressed several issues including segregation and racism. Black power had a different meaning to every member of the Mc Bride family, Ruth and James both looked at black power from a different angle. In "The Color of Water", The author James Mc Bride admired the black panthers at first, but slowly he grew afraid of them after fearing the consequences his mother might face for being a white woman in a black community influenced by black power. James' worries were baseless, black power's motive was to educate and improve African American communities not to create havoc or to harm members of the white community.

There was a time in James' life when he was thrilled to see member's of the black panther. James' states "But our favorite was a gleaming black, souped-up GTO with the words "Black Power" written in smooth white script across the hood and top"(26). James admired the owner of that car, He wanted black culture to be carried out and he seemingly loved "dap", the black panther's handshake. The media assured their viewers that the black panthers were a threat to whites anywhere ,Which planted a seed of fear in James' mind. James was so afraid that he wouldn't be able to sleep till his mother was home(33). James would sometimes find himself in situations where people would call his mother names for no apparent reason other than that she was different. James' fear for Ruth grew stronger after she was robbed by 2 black men.

Ruth on the other hand wasn't at all influence by black power nor did she have any opinions, arguments or negativity to express towards them. Ruth got along fine with black people. She was robbed by black men but that didn't change her point of view about other blacks. James was very scared when the member of the black panther was standing besides his mother but she wasn't
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