"Would a weak government, as a strong government, admit that it created the conditions for that type of outbreak to occur? A strong government would, but a government like this one, which, on the surface, appears to be strong, would do exactly what you are doing – ignore the conditions, buy off some of the "respectable" leaders, find a likely scapegoat and put the blame on him. I knew and everyone else in Harlem knew, that I was going to be the scapegoat so that the government could wipe its hands clean and duck all responsibility. Why was I the likely candidate? It's very simple. While the other so-called leaders were hiding and meeting and telling the people "things were fine," we were organizing the people to present their grievances to the city. We exposed the Police Department to be the terroristic organization that it is in Harlem. We were in the streets giving the leadership and we would not be bought off. And, of course, I am a communist!"
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Civil rights activistsSocial activistsActivists from New York CityAfrican American communistsMaoists from the United States
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Bill Epton
William Leo "Bill" Epton Jr. (January 17, 1932 – February 3, 2002) was a Maoist African-American communist activist. He was Vice Chairman of the Progressive Labor Party until about 1970.
6 quotes on TrueQuotesView all quotes by Bill Epton →
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