A dialogue on hope and persistence between a movement mentor and author, educator, and organizer, James R. Tracy.
Malik Rahim served as the chair of the New Orleans Black Panther Party for Self Defense. Since that time he has never stopped organizing. In a series of candid interviews with James R. Tracy, Rahim discusses his involvement in struggles to defend Public Housing, free political prisoners, and rebuild New Orleans post–Katrina. His unique approach to organizing—updating the politics of intercommunalism, rainbow coalitions, and municipalism—offer vital lessons for today's social movements.
Also includes interviews conducted by Malik Ismail of The Vanguard Show podcast, Jessica Gingrich of the Many Roads to Here podcast, and Mansa Musa of the Rattling the Bars radio show on The Real News Network.
Legacy Left publishes small books interviewing movement elders about the lessons they want to share with the next generations. What radical visions of the past will provide inspiration for today? What old strategies should be jettisoned? How does one maintain their political commitments throughout the decades?
We are nostalgic for nothing, yet against amnesia.
We learn from the past while charting new paths and following new visions.
Praise for A Southern Panther:
"From fights against imprisonment to mutual aid and environmental justice, A Southern Panther reminds us why Malik Rahim is still such an important voice on social movements. These interviews capture Rahim at his finest—speaking plainly about why organizing for Black people’s survival and self-determination is relevant for everyone, and sharing stories about how to do it. This book holds lessons for both newcomers and seasoned organizers." —Rachel Herzing, coauthor, How to Abolish Prisons: Lessons from the Movement Against Imprisonment
"This book excellently recounts New Orleans native Malik Rahim’s decades as a community organizer and his nexus in US history of locally rooted and collective social change across generations from the Black Panther Party to the Common Ground Collective and everything in-between that have influenced generations. It’s a must read for anyone seriously challenging the debilitating narratives around impending collapse of the world that lead to inaction and reactionary politics." —scott crow, author, Black Flags and Windmills: Hope, Anarchy and the Common Ground Collective
"I love this book! It's the next best thing to sitting on Malik Rahim's porch, soaking up his stories and their profound lessons for today's movements. Released during the twenty year anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, as we hurtle closer to climate devastation and rising fascism on a global scale, we urgently need to apply them to our current context. The (his)stories contained within these pages are a baton passed to the next generation and an homage to the current and previous ones on whose shoulders we stand. This book is a nudge to seek out our movement elders and listen. They are still living, breathing and doing the work—we just need to take the time to listen." —Lynn Lewis, editor of Women Who Change the World: Stories from the Fight for Social Justice
James R. Tracy is a Bay Area–based author and organizer. He is the coauthor of Hillbilly Nationalists, Urban Race Rebels and Black Power: Interracial Solidarity in 1960s–70s New Left Organizing, No Fascist USA!: The John Brown Anti-Klan Committee and Lessons for Today's Movements, and author of Dispatches Against Displacement: Field Notes From San Francisco's Housing Wars. Tracy serves on the Coordinating Committee of the Howard Zinn Book Fair and is the Chair of the Labor and Community Studies Department at City College of San Francisco. He has worked with the Eviction Defense Network, Coalition on Homelessness, Community Housing Partnership, Jobs with Justice SF, the San Francisco Community Land Trust, and various unions.
Malik Rahim served as the chair of the New Orleans chapter of the Black Panther Party for Self Defense. Since then, he remained in the fray, active in the struggles for the rights of political prisoners, housing, environmental justice and international concerns. He is the cofounder of Common Ground, which conducted grassroots relief campaigns to rebuild New Orleans after Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. His wealth of experience provides valuable lessons for today's organizers fighting against climate disaster and for racial justice.
