Dr. B. R. Ambedkar began his first Independent political party, the Labour party, in 1935, and since that time, most Mahars and neo-Buddhists have considered themselves members of his successive parties: the Scheduled Castes Federation from 1942 and the Republican party from 1956. Since the parties have been unable to attract higher-caste members, they remain unimportant politically at the national and state levels. Ambedkar's followers are, however, very politically aware, and they do figure in local politics where they have the numbers and the leadership. An organization calling itself the "Dalit Panthers," after the Black Panthers of the United States, arose in the early 1970s, led by educated neo Buddhists.