The following remarks by Wall Street Journal editorial page writer Hugh Pearson helped spark a spirited debate at a conference panel titled "Assuming the Universality of the Black Experience." Pearson is the author of "The Shadow of the Panther: Huey Newton and the Price of Black Power in America," a book which called into question recent romantic reinterpretations of the Black Panther experience.

The key attribute of any healthy group of people is the element in their culture that tells them they are special in the eyes of the higher creator. However, as people of black African descent define that element which makes us special, our efforts are fraught with contradictions. The racism we face is based on the notion that we are inherently less intelligent than everyone else, that we are a less advanced form of human being. Too often, in our search for authenticity, we inadvertently reinforce that image.