Black Panther Party member to discuss religion

Black Panther John Crear Discusses Religion and Politics (Screenshot from Jaime Lawson Facebook Page)

Houston's First Unitarian Universalist Church and the Freedmen's Town Farmers Market recently partnered up to present "Religion in Houston's Pan-African Community." The series reportedly deals with "the intersection of religion and Black radical politics in Houston."

The first oral history interview to be presented is with John "Bunchy" Crear of the Black Panthers. During his active years with the party, he reportedly held different roles within the organization.

The talk is scheduled at 5:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Mar. 30, at the McCoy Auditorium of the Texas Southern University.

Life of John "Bunchy" Crear

John "Bunchy" Crear was born in 1952 in Houston. He grew up in Pleasantville before going to California.

As a Black Panther, the longtime veteran served the Houston, Las Vegas, and Los Angeles chapters of the political party. As a photographer, he worked with the Black Panther News and the Black Panther Inter-Communal News Service.

In the panel interview, he recalled the difference between developing pictures before and today. He added that back then, it involved a lot of manual processes.

He then said that he was the aide of Bobby Seale, a co-founder of the party, until the latter left the organization.

Crear went back to Houston when his grandmother became ill and eventually died. During his time back, he became a People's Party II member; a group reportedly patterned after the panthers.

First Unitarian Universalist Church of Houston

The Museum District's First Unitarian Universalist Church of Houston has been in the city since 1914. They are affiliated with the Unitarian Universalist Association, which believes in diversity and inclusivity.

The organization has origins in liberal Christian traditions but has embraced teachings from Eastern and Western religions and philosophies. Today, they live by the Seven Principles, which are the following:

The inherent worth and dignity of every person;
Justice, equity, and compassion in human relations;
Acceptance of one another and encouragement to spiritual growth in our congregations;
A free and responsible search for truth and meaning;
The right of conscience and the use of the democratic process within our congregations and in society at large;
The goal of world community with peace, liberty, and justice for all;
Respect for the interdependent web of all existence of which we are a part.

Black Panthers

Huey Newton and Bobby Seale founded the Black Panther Party in 1966 to challenge police brutality against African Americans. Students founded the party after the assassination of Malcolm X and the shooting of a certain Matthew Johnson. The party originally called itself the Black Panther Party for Self-Defense.

The party reportedly owns the iconic uniform, consisting of black berets and black leather jackets. The founders based the party on Marxism. They used a "Ten-Point Program" that aims to end police brutality, give employment to African Americans, and provide housing and justice for all.

The organization conducted organized armed citizen patrols in the city of Oakland and others. However, the party soon declined after a series of "internal tensions, deadly shootouts and FBI counterintelligence activities aimed at weakening the organization."