Black Panther Party :: History

The Beginning

The Black Panther Party for Self-Defense was formed in October of 1966 by Bobby Seale and Huey Newton, while both were students at Merritt College. Versed in the works and ideology of philosopher/activists including Frantz Fanon and Mao Tse-tung, they envisioned their Party as a revolutionary movement for the restructuring of an oppressive American society. Their Ten-Point Program provided the basis for the Party’s demands, vehemently calling for a social, political and economic equality, based on socialism.

“We believe that the Black communities of America must rise up as one man to halt the progression of a trend that leads inevitably to their total destruction."

"A Pig is an ill-natured beast who has no respect for law and order, a foul traducer who's usually found masquerading as a victim of an unprovoked attack."

Witnessing both the destructive nature of American society against Blacks, as well as the lack of power with which Blacks were able to respond, Seale and Newton espoused the Party as a means of leadership for the people. As Newton states, “it must teach by words and action the correct strategic methods of prolonged resistance.” Unlike the still popular non-violence movement, the Black Panther Party for Self-Defense was to be an armed struggle, hinged on protection. Indeed one of the initial key platforms for the Party was the end to police brutality in Oakland, and this had to be done by self-defense. Only when Blacks could show that they had the power to protect themselves, and would do so in the face of oppression, would society be willing to release its harmful grip. This ideology was not only meant to scare the oppressors, but to give power and agency to the oppressed.

Adorned in menacing black leather and berets, gun in tote, Party members created an aura of fierceness, power and rhetoric which did not go unnoticed. While many Blacks were instantly empowered by the Party’s revolutionary ideology, their dependence on armed defense made them instant enemies of Oakland Police.

FREE HUEY!

On October 28, 1967, almost exactly a year after the Party was formed, violence erupted on the streets of Oakland. In the end, one policeman was dead with Huey Newton himself charged with the murder. For the Police, this event proved the inherent violent and destructive nature of the Panthers. For the Panthers, the event proved the inherent brutality and hatred by which the Police operated. In 1968, Newton was convicted of manslaughter and sentenced to jail.

"At this moment our leader, Brother Huey P. Newton, is being tried by old baldheaded racists who are predetermined to send him to the gas chamber. But they will carry out the sentence over our dead bodies. There seems to be little hope of avoiding armed war in the streets of California and of preventing it from sweeping across the nation. If there has to be a war, then let there be a war." —Eldridge Cleaver

While in jail, Newton remained as cool as ever, while outside the bars, the Party rallied in his support. With his imprisonment, Newton had become a symbol both for the Party and for the refusal to submit to any oppressive structure. As Hugh Pearson writes, “the timing of Newton’s arrest and incarceration was perfect. Everyone was searching for something to sustain their various agendas, and Huey Newton was turned into fertilizer for them all.”

Though the Free Huey campaign was successful in that it made the Black Panther Party a household name, the Party’s intense association with violence made it a likely target for police, infiltration by the FBI, and violence in the streets. The (often times sensational) media played a large role in the dissemination of the Panther’s violent image, and often independent parties involved in violence would pose as Panthers, further deteriorating the Party. With Newton in Jail and Bobby Seale facing his own trial, leadership was given to Eldridge Cleaver who increasingly advocated violent confrontations with police. Soon after taking leadership, he too was involved in a shootout and fled the country and the Party was left with little leadership and waning energy. For many, the Party had begun to stray from Newton’s original plan of liberation and only with his return would the party be able to resurface.

“So much said”

"And so the revolution's handsomest martyr had been resurrected. Women inside the movement, on the fringes of it, and no closer to the movement than the Huey Newton posters hanging in their bedrooms squealed with apolitical delight. Indeed, he did look all-powerful, all-knowing on the day of his release as he stood bare-chested on top of a car to address his cheering followers. But as usual there was no immediate way to separate followers from fans." —Gilbert Moore, A Special Rage

Poster from Panther headquarters after police raid.

"Although people received me warmly, I was at first a symbol. Our relationship had changed. There was now an element of hero worship that had not existed before I got busted. The earlier close family tie has been enlarged by an image of me created through publicity and the media. So much had been written, so much said, that I was distanced from them; there was a slight estrangement." —Huey Newton, Revolutionary Suicide

While Huey had indeed become a symbol of the Party while in jail, his time away had left him out of the loop. Nevertheless, he attempted once again to take control of the reigns of the Party and did so stressing a different agenda than initially. Instead of the main focus on self-defense, Newton promoted community programs such as free meals for children, medical programs and clothing giveaways. By the mid 1970’s the party had dramatically declined in power, with numerous members in exile or jail, while others left due to ideological differences. The Party would never recover its initial glory, and Huey was eventually killed in 1989 over a drug dispute after years of drug use and destructive behavior. Despite its downfall, the Black Panther Party for Self-Defense became a lasting, albeit controversial, symbol of revolutionary rage and furor, and a victim of an ideology which in the end could not escape from itself.