Posted on 11/18/2004 12:49:25 PM PST by Greek
Hillary Clinton Stalked By True Black Panther Story While Hillary has announced her plans to run again for Senate in 2006, the story of her radical support of cop killers and subsequent verification appears to be true as reported on Truth or Fiction:
Hillary Clinton Once Supported Black Panthers on Trial For Murder-Truth!
Summary of eRumor: According to the eRumor, in the late 1960's, two Black Panthers were tried for murder in the death of a fellow Black Panther, Alex Rackley. Rackley was tortured before being killed. The Panthers who were tried, Warren Kimbro and Erica Huggins, escaped prosecution thanks, in part, to the defense of Hillary Clinton. Warren Kimbro went on to Harvard and became Assistant Dean of Eastern Connecticut State College. Erica Huggins was elected to a school board.
The Truth: This eRumor has developed a life of its own with differing interpretations of what is true or not true about it.
It circulated widely during Hillary Rodham Clinton's year 2000 run for the U.S. Senate and obviously came from a critic.
According to published accounts, Alex Rackley was a Panther recruit from New York who was tortured and killed in New Haven, Connecticut because he was suspected of being a police informant. Twelve Panthers were indicted including Warren Kimbro, Erica Huggins, and Panther leader Bobby Seale. Contrary to the email, Kimbro was not proven to be the "shooter" and did not stand trial, but did plead guilty to second degree murder. He was later released from prison and admitted to Harvard. We have not found evidence that he was a college dean. Another Panther was convicted of having fired the fatal shot and was sentenced to life in prison. Huggins and Seale were tried together, but the jury deadlocked and their cases were dismissed.
The Bobby Seales trial drew protests, not because the protestors approved of murder, but they felt that the Panthers were being treated unfairly by the authorities and that Seales, who was not personally involved in the killing, should not have been tried. There were demonstrations at Yale, but they were peaceful, did not "shut down" the university.
John Elvin of Insight magazine looked into the Hillary-Panthers eRumor as well as how it was handled by some urban legends sites and wrote his findings in an article that appeared in July of 2000. He quotes former sixties radical David Horowitz as saying that both Hillary Rodham and Bill Lann Lee organized demonstrations at Yale against the Panther trial. Elvin also says, "Insight reviewed biographies of Hillary Clinton by Milton, Brock and Roger Morris for this story and lengthy selections from such other biographies as Barbara Olson’s Hell to Pay. Together, relying on primary and other firsthand sources, they unquestionably back Horowitz’s contention that Hillary was a campus leader during the Panther protests."
Commentator Joseph Farah says she also assisted Seales' lawyer, Charles Garry.
That was all a long time ago and most of us would not want to be characterized by our views and activities in college or graduate school, but, for whatever it's worth, they do become a part of our story.
Yeah, and for what's worth, Kerry's Vietnam follies became a part of his 2004 campaign story. While this Panther story was circulated during Hillary's successful 2000 Senate bid, I believe it will have more meaning in her 2008 presidential campaign. Kerry's war record was on full display during his previous successful senatorial campaigns as well and like Massachusetts, New Yorkers will likely disregard the Panther story in 2008. But the the rest of red America will not be so blind.
http://www.foxnews.com/photo_essay/photoessay_219_images/111804_clinton_hillary.jpg
Snopes or Truth or Fiction?
http://www.snopes.com/inboxer/outrage/panthers.htm
And of course, there is the usual tired and altogether too predictable charge of "McCarthyism."
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