Both the 10-Point Program and 13-Point Program written by the Black Panthers and Young Lords had the same theme centered around liberation, equality and justice for black and brown communities. The 10-Point Program was more focused on the injustices committed against the Black community by the United States government while the 13-Point Program was written by Puerto Ricans and focused on liberation for Latin, Black, Asian and other oppressed communities. They were both effectively written as a clear layout plan of reasonable demands for their communities and why they should be honored under the law. Both documents emphasize the importance of self-governed education not meddled with by white supremacy, self-governed health care, protection for their people from serving in the American military due to the racist history of this country, having the Black and Latin communities control their own labor and means of production and overall liberation for their own communities from oppressive white supremacist rule. These two documents are very similar, almost parallel since the Young Lords and Black Panthers had most of the same exact points.
If I were to write a version for political justice today it would probably be almost identical to what the Black Panthers and Young Lords wrote honestly. I agree with every point in both documents and feel a lot of them have not still been honored in present times. However, if I were to add my own points I would probably include more about women’s rights and protections specifically. Not to say Bobby Seale and Huey Newton were sexists but I did read Eldridge Cleaver’s statements from his autobiography admitting to raping black women to practice for raping white women. Obviously not every Black Panther had this ideology, and I guess there is always a “bad apple” in every bunch however misogynoir is still very rampant today. Respectfully the number one cause of death for Black women right now is their own men. I feel like the Black Panthers put more emphasis on racism without really addressing sexism or making it seem less important to their cause. I believe that is because most men, even ones who fight for social justice, still inherently want to control women for their own benefit. The Young Lords specifically made a point in their program that denounced male chauvinism and toxic masculinity which is something the 10-Point Program lacked.
In our society since Mesopotamia or earlier, women have been considered currency and capital. Even the most well-respected innovative men in our communities have been guilty of misogyny and degradation to women. Abusing women to this day is embedded deep in our culture since the foundations required for capitalism to thrive are racism and sexism. I honestly can’t think of any specific points to make it would take me carefully analyzing the current laws for accuracy to make sure what I include in the document is relevant and realistic. For example, I wouldn’t be vague and simply include a point that “women have the right to abortion and reproductive healthcare” because due to the current polarization of varying laws in this country it would then be argued that “abortion is legal women can still get abortions”. Which this is both true and false because yes in my state of New York I can currently still get access to abortions however there are many women across the United States currently dying due to these legal technicalities revolving around fetuses and conception. I would want to be more educated and research the current confusing laws of each state so I can make a well thought accurate set of points so it will not only make sense but also be taken seriously and stand up to any legal argument; or dispute by opposition.
Overall, my “10/13-Point Program” would include a lot of the same exact points that the Black Panthers and the Young Lords already made but I would go a step further to focus on the rights of women and children in each state. I would focus on misogyny, misogynoir, the lack of rights to autonomy that many children should have and just children’s rights in general since children have no rights currently and are considered property of their parent(s). The Black Panthers and Young Lords were well versed in the law and had all their ducks in a row when they wrote out their demands. I would imitate the careful wording they used to be observed under the law and taken seriously by the United States government. Nonetheless, there are still many points made in both documents that to this day the United States government failed to fulfill. These documents were made in the 1960s-1970 where revolution and civil rights were most Americans top priority. Unfortunately, after the civil rights movement in the 70s came Neoliberal capitalism, which is what we currently have today and it can be argued that this oppressive oligarch capitalist system reversed a lot of progress that seemed to be made in the 60s- which depresses me. It depresses me to see how the American citizens have become so far removed and entrenched in colonialism and imperialism since the Black Panthers and Young Lords wrote these documents. We need the Black Panthers and Young Lords right now.
