Background
Mark James Robert Essex was born in Emporia, Kansas. After graduating from Emporia Senior High School in 1967 Essex attended Emporia State University, where he dropped out after only one semester. He joined the United States Navy as a dental technician in 1969, stationed in San Diego, California, where he claimed he was subjected to two years of ceaseless racial abuse. His black friends tried to explain to him that racism in the military was just a bitter pill that he had to learn to swallow. Another black friend claimed "he came into the military expecting it to be just like Emporia. He quickly found out that it wasn't". He went absent without leave (AWOL) from October 19 - November 16, 1970. He was given a general discharge for unsuitability on 10 February 1971, for "character and behavior disorders." After his discharge, he became involved with black radicals in San Francisco, California and later joined the New York Black Panthers.
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