Things I Learned from My Visit with Darryl "King Rick" Farmer, Leader of the Black Panthers of Milwaukee

King Rick

I first learned about Darryl Farmer (a.k.a. King Rick) and the Black Panthers of Milwaukee through Paul Lemenager, a producer with Dogsnose Media, which I wrote about here. Their team had produced a show titled No Justice, No Peace: The Original Black Panthers of Milwaukee which was accepted into the Catalyst Content Festival. What struck me was his statement that No Justice, No Peace was one of the most interesting projects he'd worked on his entire life.

King Rick and his bodyguard Quodo came to Duluth last week to attend Catalyst, whereupon we made arrangements to meet. On Friday the three of us met at the hotel where they were staying. What follows are notes stimulated by our exchange. First off what really struck me was the feeling I had that in our core we were just three guys sharing life experiences. 

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The original Black Panther Party was founded by Huey Newton and Bobby Seale in 1966. It was a movement of high impact, though relatively short lived. When we say "Black Panthers" it forms an image in many peoples' minds, usually associated with violence.

This is not surprising when you look at the 150 years of violence perpetrated against Blacks since the end of the Civil War, not only in the Jim Crowe South. In researching for this meeting I learned that Huey Newton was raised in Ouachita Parish, Louisina where there had been 37 lynchings from 1877 to 1950. Hence, the motivation to take action against injustice.

Black Panthers of Milwuakee Facebook header.

Black Panther chapters formed in numerous cities in the late 60s. King Rick said, "I was born, bred and educated at the table of a Panther in Milwaukee."

One day, when he was in Head Start at age five, an Open Housing March took place in Milwaukee. As the march went past his school, he left class to go participate.

He described himself as an inquisitive youth, waking up to issues around age 10. He was also growing up physically, and played basketball in high school. "Our school won the state championship," he said. He later went on to play pro basketball overseas for a spell. His career was in education, teaching French while also coaching a successful high school basketball program.

King Rick

King Rick talked about political prisoners who were unjustly sent away--Geronimo Pratt, Dhoruba Bin Wahad (Richard Moore) and others. Then he briefly outlined the history of the Black Panthers in Milwaukee. After the Black Panthers disbanded in the early 1980s it went underground. "In 1990 Commander Mike McGee Sr. decided to bring back the Black Panther militia. I was his bodyguard."

The non-violent Milwaukee Panthers whom King Rick leads are community-minded activists. “If anyone is a detriment to the community we will hold you accountable.”

He stated that Milwaukee is the most segregated city in America, and the worst place to raise black children. "It’s a modern Tammany Hall." King Rick sees Mayor Tom Barrett as Boss Tweed. “We’re not a hate group. We’re just against these things.”

He described the manner in which the group exposes injustice. “Everything we do is strategic. We plan ahead of time, but don’t tell when we’ll show up.” Stealth is a part of the modus operandi. And even though they are opposed to violence they will use it if necessary to protect their families. "The complete village is our family."

There's another side of the Black Panthers that is equally important.

"We do a lot of community activities, neighborhood clean-ups and giveaways," he said. "For example, we do an annual Mother’s Day giveaway for 5 moms who lost kids to violence. We do a book bag giveaway. At Thanksgiving we give away 100 new coats, hats, gloves and turkeys. On December 28, Kwanzaa, we give gifts to 5 kids who lost parents through violence."

As you can see the community activities help people while also raising awareness regarding serious issues. There are at least 15 chapters of the Black Panthers across the country and it continues to expand, he said, because the work is not done.

King Rick's bodyguard Quodo

Quodo, King Rick’s bodyguard, was also on hand. He’s served two tours of duty overseas, Desert Shield and Desert Storm. Quodo shared details about these experiences which included service in the  3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment, support for helicopters.

Today the Panthers are active on social media, on YouTube and Facebook. They also have a website. “Social media is a blessing and a curse,” Farmer said.

King Rick still believes in democracy and the power of the people. “When people (in power) are afraid of change, we can vote them out of office.”

“When we challenge people we don’t let them know we’re coming. The element of surprise is important to us.”

I asked what they see as the biggest current issues. "Donald Trump and education are one and two. Oppressive beliefs is a close third."

The next thing King Rick said was something I'd heard three decades ago from a friend. “The laws and attitudes of America were never designed to protect the people it oppresses. The original police force was formed to catch slaves.” We have a heinous history, he noted, adding,  “It’s only going to change if we make it change.”

Currently the Black Panthers of Milwaukee holds weekly meetings. One recent issue they dealt with had to do with a man who killed the mother of a family of four. "We persuaded him to turn himself in."

For King Rick the work he is doing comes from a sense of calling that is rooted in his ancestry. Speaking truth to power is a non-violent political tactic that takes courage and resolve. The purpose of confrontation is illumination.

Next year the Democratic National Convention will be held in Milwaukee. In light of the times we live in, I suspect it won't be just another political event. The Black Panthers of Milwaukee will be there.

Related Links
No Justice, No Peace Trailer
About the Black Panther Party
Getting Ready for Catalyst

Getting Ready for Catalyst: A Visit With Paul Lemenager of Dogsnose Media

Brian Leighton, "American Buskers"

I heard a rumor last month that there were no local films accepted to be part of  next week's international content festival. Ironically, the very next day I was posting an interview with two local women, Megan McGarvey and Katie Lindow, about their documentary Outsourced, a film about a UWS incident that is being featured at Catalyst.

Next, I discovered a short documentary on painter Jeffrey T. Larson, co-founder of the Great Lakes Academy of Fine Art, after which I stumbled upon another local connection. Local writer Jean Sramek had a script accepted for a different aspect of the five-day festival.

When I called Lance Parthe (Parthe Film & Video Productions) to inquire if he was involved in any way, I learned that his team had two documentaries in the festival. You can see the sizzle reel here for American Buskers. Lance suggested I reach out to Producer Paul Lemenager and I called to set up a meeting.

We met in the studio offices and flipped through a series of topics. I've been working with Parthe Productions for more than 30 years as a client, for a range of projects including training videos and television commercials.  (See: The Changing Face of Post-Production for Movie Makers) So, I am well acquainted with the Parthe team.

The two videos accepted by Catalyst are actually products of Dogsnose Media. Dogsnose is a subsidiary or side-project of Parthe comprised of Lance, Paul, Nick Kapanke and Matt Wiechmann whom Paul referred to as Mega-Matt. Each member of the team brings a set of gifts to the whole and a long history of exceptional work. (Paul also performs as a jazz singer, but this is not relevant for the purposes of this story, so I won't elaborate.)

Mega-Matt works out of Mankato as a nationally acclaimed DJ, putting on foam parties with smoke-filled bubbles. He gets hired for special occasions like weddings, school parties, Vikings training camp, big family gatherings. His parents are professors.

Nick is a 25 year veteran in the film & video world who got sucked into the Parthe Vortex at some point. He's a key part of the team as a director and chief creative officer for Parthe when Lance is not involved. I personally worked with Nick on several extreme sports TV spots 20 years ago.

We began by talking about Dogsnose Media in general. "Our first project was called Hopping the Pond," Lemenager said. "It involved a boxer named Kell Brook. His brother Billy the Hard Man makes videos, and is a brilliant comedic talent. When Billy turned out to be unavailable, we found a replacement, Neil Hurst, who is an accomplished actor."

American Buskers, one of two Catalyst-selected videos Dogsnose produced, came about when nationally recognized Twin Cities artist GB Leighton came in to Duluth for a concert at the Beacon Inn. "A group of us went up to watch him and before the concert he started working the crowd. He came to our table, asked questions and learned our names. He proceeded to circulate and learned everyone’s names, which he endeavored to work into his act. It was highly entertaining," Lemenager said, adding, "I enjoy music and come from a musical family and especially appreciated it."

Nick and Paul love music, so they wanted to produce a documentary around the fringe musicians of the busker scene. As they were brainstorming who to have as MC, it was a no-brainer. Brian Leighton. Gaelynn Lea and Joe Anderson also appear in this video.

"No Justice, No Peace"

Another big project, also accepted by Catalyst, is No Justice No Peace:The Original Black Panthers of Milwaukee. (Watch the Trailer.)

This show came together thru viral videos. Lemenager’s nephew asked if he had heard of them. Darryl Farmer, a.k.a King Rick, grew up as a cub in the Panthers. He taught high school, was a basketball coach, and was a bodyguard for some of the original Black Panthers. "He’s an interesting guy. His bodyguard is Quodo." Lemenager admitted. "This is one of the more interesting projects I’ve been involved with in my life."

Historically, after the activism of half century ago the Black Panthers broke into two divisions. One group remained militant, the other became community minded. No guns. Don’t beat people up. Use your influence to make things right.

Today King Rick is head general of Black Panthers of Milwaukee which are in resurgence nationally. There is a lot of civil strife in Milwaukee. "Milwaukee is not a city of inclusion," King Rick says. "Milwaukee is a city of illusion."

The Dogsnose Media team visited their headquarters, as well as local businesses, the Milwaukee mayor's offices and the Governor Walker's office in Madison. Several month's later King Rick and company came to Duluth to continue filming. In addition he was made available to speak at local schools of which Proctor, where a majority of the kids are Caucasian, was the only one who accepted his offer.

“I got to be a Black Panther for a day," some of the kids said afterwards.

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The Catalyst Content Festival begins a week from tomorrow. Follow this link to check out the schedule of events, films and other activities. Festival Schedule

And if you're a serious screenwriter, the Jacob Krueger Studio Masterclass looks like something that I can't help but imagine would be useful.