Sue Hartigan <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> writes: Black Panther Leader Cleaver Dies > POMONA, Calif. (AP) -- Eldridge Cleaver, the fiery > Black Panther leader whose prison-written book ``Soul > On Ice'' became one of the seminal works of the Black > Power movement, died Friday at age 62. > > Cleaver died at 6:20 a.m. at Pomona Valley Hospital > Medical Center, spokeswoman Leslie Porras said. She > declined to provide any cause of death or any details > about his hospitalization, citing the family's request. > > At times a convict, political candidate and author, > Cleaver was one of the original Black Panthers, formed > in 1966 in Oakland by Huey P. Newton and Bobby Seale. > > More recently, though, he denounced his past stance and > joined the Republican Party. > > However, just last month, he appeared at an Earth Day > conference in Portland, Ore. ``I've gone beyond civil > rights and human rights to creation rights,'' he said. > He was working as a university diversity consultant. > > In April 1968, Cleaver, the fledgling Black Panther > Party's information minister, was involved in a violent > shootout with police in Oakland. Panther treasurer > Bobby Hutton, 17, was killed in the gun battle, and > Cleaver and two police officers were wounded. > > Cleaver was arrested after the shootout, but jumped > $50,000 bail and fled the United States. > > Prior to his return to the United States in 1975, he > told reporters he believed he would be treated fairly > in court. > > ``A new situation now exists in the United States. The > war in Vietnam is over. The status and condition of > black people has undergone a fundamental change for the > better. The American people have been shocked into > objectivity and vigilance by the exposure of the > massive, systematic and conspiratorial subversion of > their democratic rights,'' he said. > > He also denounced the Black Panthers upon his return. > > After a protracted legal battle, attempted murder > charges in the shootout were dropped, and Cleaver was > placed on probation and ordered to do community service > for assault. > > Before his Black Panther days, Cleaver was convicted in > 1958 of assault with intent to kill. He was paroled > after nine years in prison. He also had a 1954 > conviction for narcotics possession. > > While in prison, Cleaver wrote ``Soul on Ice,'' a > series of powerful essays decrying prejudice and > racism. Published in 1968, it became a focus of the > Black Power movement. > > Cleaver ran unsuccessfully for president in 1968 on the > Peace and Freedom Party ticket. Following his campaign, > he was ousted from the Panthers because of a bitter and > public dispute with Newton. > > After his self-imposed exile abroad, Cleaver became a > born-again Christian and a Republican. He made a failed > attempt for the GOP nomination for the U.S. Senate in > California. > > He also claimed to be a rabid anti-Communist, because > of his experiences on the run behind the Iron Curtain. > > ``Red-fighting -- that's what I'm doing,'' Cleaver said > in an interview during his congressional campaign. ``I > have taken an oath in my heart to oppose communism > until the day I die.'' > > In the past decade, the gray-haired, bespectacled > Cleaver had occasional brushes with the law. He was > placed on probation in 1988 after separate convictions > for burglary and cocaine possession. > > In 1992, he was arrested for alleged cocaine > possession, but a judge threw out the charges after > determining Cleaver was improperly arrested. > > In a 1986 interview with The Associated Press, Cleaver > attempted to explain his many transformations. > > ``Everybody changes, not just me,'' he said. ``I was > pulled over in my car with my secretary for a traffic > thing and one of the officers walked up to the car, and > saw me sitting inside. He took off his hat and said, > `Hey, Eldridge, remember me?''' > > ``He used to be a Panther,'' Cleaver explained. ``It > was hard to believe.'' -- Two rules in life: 1. Don't tell people everything you know. 2. Subscribe/Unsubscribe, email: [EMAIL PROTECTED] In the body of the message enter: subscribe/unsubscribe law-issues
