Historical Novel By Controversial Author Explores Black Panther Party & Racial Relations Through The Lens Of 1960’s- 70’s Civil Rights Movement
Several generations before the Black Lives Matter movement took hold, there was a bigger, more controversial group fighting for civil rights and equality in America. A new book, When Black Panthers Prowled Amerika, offers a unique look at the Black Panthers Party through the eyes of an author who marched in the south in the 1960s under Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Though Pam’s book (that is how the author wants tobe known) is historical fiction, it features mostly real figures from a tumultuous era, and meditates on race relations that offer insights into today’s society. The book has stirred controversy because the author is not a young Black woman, but rather an older white guy. Pam is the last name of the author – not the first. “Because of accusations of cultural misappropriation, I wasn’t able to get published under my real name,” says Pam. “We live in the time of a hyper-sensitive cancel culture that many people wonder if it is racist and sexist in itself.”
Pam is available to discuss in interviews the following:
- How history views the accomplishments of the Black Panther Party.
- What can be done to improve racial equality in the U.S.
- Why racial relations are still terse, half a century after the Black Panthers were dismantled.
- A new perspective on J. Edgar Hoover’s role in suppressing the Panthers.
- Why several publishers refused to publish Pam’s book.
- Who gets to tell the story of the Black Panthers.
Pam, a psychotherapist by trade, writes with a unique perspective on a subject matter that is both
historical and ever so timely for today’s world. The book is informative, analytical, and
enlightening – and sure to stir a debate both for its contents and its author.
Pam, who has been a psychotherapist for over half a century, is the author of three books, including the historical novel, When Black Panthers Prowled Amerika.
In 1964, Pam joined a thousand college students to participate in the “Mississippi Freedom Summer,” under the aegis of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Three civil-rights workers were lynched by the Klan right at the outset of the project. Following his life-changing experience down south, Pam returned north to lead a civil rights group in Buffalo.
Pam’s career as a clinical psychologist includes 34 years of service at Bronx Psychiatry Center, including a 10-year stint as the Director of Psychology Department. For the past 21 years, Pam has engaged in private practice.
As an adjunct assistant professor (psychology) at the Albert Einstein School of Medicine, Pam also taught at several colleges and graduate schools, including Fordham and Yeshiva Universities, the New School for social Research, and was an adjunct associate professor of psychology at Bronx Community College for 24 years.
A veteran of the United States Army, Pam has been an active member of the American Psychological Association, American Group Psychotherapy Association, and New York State Psychological Association.
Pam’s earlier two books addressed issues in therapy and science; in addition, he has published numerous articles in professional journals such as Psychiatric Quarterly, American Journal of Psychiatry, Psychological Reports, Archives of General Psychiatry, New Ideas in Psychology, International Journal of Group Psychotherapy, American Journal of Psychotherapy, Journal of Mind and Behavior, and Professional Psychology, Research, and Practice.
Pam earned his Ph.D. in Psychology from the State University of New York at Buffalo and Pam’s M.A. in Psychology came from New School for Social Research. He also earned another M.A., in Modern European History, from New York University, and a B.A. in History from Brooklyn College.
Pam, raised in Brooklyn, New York, now resides in Westchester, New York.
