>What is Black Nationalism? What are its core beliefs?
According to the official wikipedia definition, "Black nationalism is a type of nationalism or pan-nationalism which espouses the belief that black people are a race and seeks to develop and maintain a black racial and national identity." I think its pretty accurate.
>How did Black Nationalism start?
Initially inspired by the success of the Haitian Revolution, political activist, theorist and public orator Marcus Garvey sought to create a movement in which blacks (by which i mean Black Americans) were given a distinct identity and allowed to either return to the Motherland (Africa) or have a system in which they lived in America as a distinct racial groups, with black businesses chipping in to support black communities.
Further along the road, enticed by the idea that blacks could form a distinct and ethnic diaspora, and not just become the race of wherever they were at, Malcolm X was one of the greatest supporters of Black Nationalism in the world, and arguably the most successful in almost getting it established as a real political movement. Malcolm X was an avid advocate of black independence and the reclaiming of black pride and masculinity.
This thread can include everything from the Nation of Islam, to the Black Hebrew Israelites, to the New Black Panther Party.