Huey Percy Newton was born on February 17, 1942 in Monroe, Louisiana, was the youngest of seven siblings, born to Walter Newton and Armelia Johnson. Newton’s family settled in Oakland, California in 1945 during World War II. As a child, Newton would often be the victim of bullying because of his light skin, small frame, high voice and name. Instead of accepting reticule from his peers, Newton developed a tough skin, rebellious spirit and learned to defend himself at any cost. During Newton’s adolescent years, he began to fight to establish a tough reputation. As he approached high school, the fighting became frequent and he participated in numerous car and home thefts. Eventually, he graduated to more extensive crimes including pimping and various scams.
Education was not a priority until his senior year of high school. Until this point, he did not know how to read, so he taught himself and became interested in philosophy. His senior year in high school was the year he realized that being educated could lead to various opportunities. He occasionally attended Oakland’s Merritt College where he continued to have run-ins with the law. Newton took law courses to further and strengthen his crime sprees hoping…show more content… A critical thinker recognizes the issue under discussion and the varying conclusions about the issue, examines the reasons given to support conclusions, and a critical thinker uses the structure of an argument to make thoughtful decisions. Huey Newton embodies these elements because of his fight to end racial brutality. He worked endlessly to promote a message of social change and a leader in his own right. He faced lots of criticism him for his broad-thinking and militant styled approach, but that earned him notoriety as a radical
