Die Standing

“During the Black Power Movement of the 1960s, Gil Scott Heron said, ‘The revolution will not be televised.’  Today, the revolution is being televised, and it’s waking up the whole world to take action.” — Elmer Dixon

This powerful memoir—with a foreword by former Black Panther Party Chairman Bobby Seale—sets the record straight about the altruistic mission of the Black Panther Party, whose image has been maligned in media, movies, and minds as angry, gun-toting, misogynistic thugs.

On the contrary, the Panthers started a free breakfast program for children… distributed free groceries to families… opened schools… founded health clinics… and provided patrols to protect people from police abuse. They did what they felt the government was not doing for Black people. And now, their 10-point plan can serve as a blueprint for the social justice movement today.

The recent popularity—and awards season buzz—for the film Judas and the Black Messiah illustrates a renewed interest in understanding the Panthers, their goals, and their demise after notorious FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover declared them “the greatest threat to the internal security of the country.”

Dixon presents all of the above through vivid, suspenseful storytelling that engages the reader’s mind, heart, and soul. With engaging stories, the book references his family’s roots during slavery, describes his father’s survival of racist attacks by Americans as a U.S. Army soldier during World War II, showcases how he grew up in a multicultural Seattle neighborhood, and chronicles his awakening to the cause of human rights.

Having marched with Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. in Seattle as a child, Dixon came of age during an era of assassinations: Malcolm X, President John F. Kennedy, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Medgar Evers, Bobby Hutton, and many others.

Spurred to action by Black Power leader Stokely Carmichael’s speech at his high school, Dixon committed his life as a revolutionary after seeing 17-year-old Little Bobby Hutton—riddled with 30-plus police bullets—lying in a casket.

“That could be me,” thought Dixon, also 17, surrounded by hundreds of people—including movie star Marlon Brando and Panthers wearing trademark berets and leather jackets—who filled the Oakland, California church and surrounding neighborhood to hear Black Panther Party Chairman Bobby Seale’s electrifying, urgent directive to protect Black lives, provide resources for Black people to thrive, and to dismantle racism.

A short time later, as co-founder of the first Black Panther Party chapter outside of California, Dixon worked alongside his brother, Aaron Dixon, author of My People Are Rising: Memoir of a Black Panther Party Captain.

In Die Standing, Dixon describes how heavily armed Panthers confronted police to protect Black drivers. He also takes the reader into suspenseful scenes inside the Panthers’ home and offices: a fortified bunker that was under constant threat of attack by law enforcement officers, false accusations, imprisonment and assassinations of fellow Panthers. Dixon writes about the time he spent time in prison, all the while living by his declaration that:

“I would rather die standing than live on my knees.”

The book shows how, after 16 years in the Party, Dixon began working as an EEO Officer and Training Manager for a large organization, where he developed and implemented trainings and monitoring of sexual harassment and racial discrimination.

Later, his high-profile work against sexual harassment impressed the two female founders of Executive Diversity Services, who invited him to join their company.

And now coming full circle, the same tenets of the Black Panther Party’s mission to protect Black lives from police brutality and death have elevated him as one of the most sought-after Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion expert trainers in the United States and the world.

A devoted family man, Dixon shares how he met his wife of 48 years, Dee Dee, and how his love for his children and grandchildren continues to embolden his commitment to creating a better world.

Die Standing offers Elmer Dixon’s inspiring story and action-oriented teachings to help propel the social justice movement by creating a world where Black and Brown people are safe to live, learn, and prosper with equality and justice for all.

Interview the Author, Invite Him to Speak

Elmer Dixon is available for media interviews and speaking engagements. Contact Elizabeth Ann Atkins at 313-647-8824 or Elizabeth@TwoSistersWriting.com.

The book cover was designed by Illumination Graphics of Merlin, Oregon.

ISBNs

Hardcover: 978-1-956879-39-1

Paperback: 978-1-956879-40-7

eBook: 978-1-956879-41-4

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If you are interested in placing an order of 25 or more, please email us at Catherine@twosisterswriting.com.