List of members of the Black Panther Party
Courtroom sketch of Black Panthers Bobby Seale , George W. Sams, Jr. , Warren Kimbro , and Ericka Huggins , during the 1970 New Haven Black Panther trials .
This is an alphabetical referenced list of members of the Black Panther Party , including those notable for being Panthers as well as former Panthers who became notable for other reasons. This list does not include outside supporters, sympathizers, or allies.
JoNina Abron-Ervin , reporter and editor of The Black Panther .[1]
Mumia Abu-Jamal , Lieutenant Minister of Information, Philadelphia chapter. In prison for the murder of a police officer.[2]
Sundiata Acoli , Finance Minister of the Harlem chapter who served 49 years in prison for murdering a New Jersey state trooper, and was released in 2022.[3] [4]
Ashanti Alston , anarchist activist .[5]
Richard Aoki , Field Marshal[6] and FBI informant .[7] Committed suicide in 2009.
Kuwasi Balagoon , former member Harlem chapter and one of the Panther 21 .
Charles Barron former member Harlem chapter, community activist and Democratic New York City Councilmember [8]
Lucille Berrien , political activist from Milwaukee.[9]
Dhoruba bin Wahad , New York activist and one of the Panther 21 .
Veronza Bowers, Jr. , served 50 years in prison for murdering a park ranger.[10] Released on May 7, 2024.[11]
William Lee Brent , hijacked a plane to Cuba in 1968, lived in exile there until his death in 2006.[12]
Elaine Brown , Chairwoman, Minister of Defense (mid 1970s), for a time was a 2008 Green Party presidential candidate.[13] [14]
H. Rap Brown , Former SNCC leader, Justice Minister, currently serving life sentence for murder.[15]
Safiya Bukhari , member of Harlem chapter.
Ed Bullins , Minister of Culture in San Francisco, and renowned playwright.[16]
Stokely Carmichael , Former SNCC leader and Honorary Prime Minister. He lived in exile in Africa from 1969 until his death in 1998.[17]
Bunchy Carter , Deputy Minister of Defense, Southern California chapter, killed in 1969.[18]
Mark Clark , Defense Captain, Illinois chapter, killed by police in 1969.[19]
Eldridge Cleaver , Minister of Information[20] Died in 1998.
Kathleen Neal Cleaver , Party spokesperson and law school professor.[14]
Paul Coates , defense captain of the Baltimore chapter.
Mark Comfort , community activist.
Marshall "Eddie" Conway , Minister of Defense of the Baltimore chapter. Served 44 years in prison for the murder of a police officer, until his conviction was overturned.[21]
Donald L. Cox , Field Marshall of the party. Died in exile in France in 2011.[22]
Aaron Dixon , community activist, former captain of the Seattle chapter of the Party. Ran with the Green Party for U.S. Senate on his opposition to the Iraq War .[23]
Emory Douglas , artist, Minister of Culture, and strongly associated with the The Black Panther (newspaper) .[24]
B. Kwaku Duren , coordinator of the Southern California chapter from 1976 to 1981[25]
Barbara Easley-Cox , wife of Donald L. Cox .
Lorenzo Kom'boa Ervin , anarchist activist .
Glen Ford , journalist.[26]
Kent Ford , co founder of Portland chapter.[27]
Reggie Forte , member of Oakland chapter.
Larry Gossett , member of Seattle chapter.
Stanley Greene , photojournalist.
Bashir Hameed , deputy chairman of Jersey City chapter.
Fred Hampton , Deputy Chairman, Illinois chapter; killed in a 1969 raid by the Chicago police and the FBI .[19]
Tim Hayes , founder of Atlanta chapter, writer and community activist.[28]
David Hilliard , chief of staff, university lecturer and party archivist.[29]
Raymond Hewitt , civil rights activist.[30]
Elbert Howard , founding member of the party and first editor of its newspaper, The Black Panther .[31]
Ericka Huggins , longtime party leader, professor of sociology.[14]
John Huggins Los Angeles chapter leader. Killed in 1969.[18]
Bobby Hutton , first party recruit, treasurer; killed by police in 1968.[32]
George Jackson , author and prison activist. Killed in prison in 1971.
Jamal Joseph , film professor, author and Oscar nominee.[33]
Judy Juanita , Author who served as editor of The Black Panther (newspaper) .[34]
Magora Kennedy , LGBT activist.[35]
Chaka Khan , former member of the Chicago chapter, and singer who has won ten Grammy awards .[36]
Warren Kimbro , convicted in the murder of Alex Rackley, prisoner rehabilitation activist; died in 2009.[37]
Robert Hillary King , author, lecturer and former member of the Angola Prison Chapter[38]
Art Lassiter , musician.
Joan Tarika Lewis , graphic artist associated with the The Black Panther (newspaper) and the first woman to join the party.[39]
Connie Matthews , International Coordinator of the BPP.
Lonnie McLucas , Bridgeport, Connecticut member convicted in the murder of Alex Rackley .[40]
Huey P. Newton , Minister of Defense, co-founder. Killed in 1989.[41]
Kojo Nnamdi , radio host who was a member from 1968 to 1969 in Brooklyn .[42] [43]
Jalil Muntaqim , former political prisoner .
Salim Muwakkil , journalist.
Kiilu Nyasha , journalist.
Sekou Odinga , activist.
Charlotte Hill O'Neal , community organizer.
Pete O'Neal , Chairman, Kansas City chapter, who lives in exile in Tanzania.[44]
William O'Neal , FBI informant whose role was dramatized in the film Judas and the Black Messiah .
Pat Parker , Black lesbian-feminist poet and activist. Died in 1989.
Larry Pinkney , served nine years in prison in Canada and the U.S., and was also a member of the Republic of New Africa .[45]
Geronimo Pratt , Deputy Minister of Defense, died in 2011.[46]
Alex Rackley , New York member murdered by fellow Panthers in 1969. His killing resulted in the New Haven Black Panther trials .[37]
Malik Rahim , early New Orleans chapter organizer, currently a co-founder of Common Ground Collective , a post Hurricane Katrina relief organization.[47]
Nile Rodgers , guitarist for rock/disco band Chic and music producer.[48]
Bobby Rush , Minister of Defense, Illinois Chapter, and since 1993, U.S. Representative for Illinois's 1st congressional district .[19]
George W. Sams, Jr. , convicted in the 1969 murder of Alex Rackley . He testified for the prosecution.[37]
Reggie Schell , Defense Captain, Philadelphia chapter.[49]
Bobby Seale , Chairman and co-founder of the Black Panthers.[50]
Afeni Shakur , one of the New York 21 and mother of Tupac Shakur .
Assata Shakur , political activist still in exile in Cuba who remains on the FBI Most Wanted Terrorist list .
Russell Maroon Shoatz , served 49 years in prison for the murder of a Philadelphia police officer.[51]
Marion Stamps , member of Chicago chapter.
Michael Tabor , New York activist and one of the Panther 21 .[52]
Robert Trivers , evolutionary biologist .[53]
Denise Oliver-Vélez , professor, Contributing Editor for Daily Kos , and former activist and community organizer.[54]
John Watson , Detroit chapter leader and activist with the League of Revolutionary Black Workers .[55]
Michael Zinzun , activist.
References
^ Spencer, Robyn C. (2016). " "I Am We": The Demise of the Black Panther Party, 1977-1982". The Revolution Has Come: Black Power, Gender, and the Black Panther Party in Oakland . Duke University Press . pp. 188–193. doi :10.2307/j.ctv11cw9mt.11 . ISBN 9780822362753 . JSTOR j.ctv11cw9mt.11 . LCCN 2016023568 .
^ Williams, Timothy (7 December 2011). "Execution Case Dropped Against Mumia Abu-Jamal in Officer's Killing" . New York Times . Retrieved 24 February 2016 .
^ Juang, Richard M. (2008). Africa and the Americas: Culture, Politics, and History . Bloomsbury Academic. ISBN 9781851094417 .
^ Funk, Luke (10 May 2022). "NJ Supreme Court orders Sundiata Acoli eligible for parole; killed state trooper in 1973" . Fox 5 New York . Retrieved 15 October 2022 .
^ "Anarchist Panther" . Anarchist Panther. Retrieved 28 July 2010 .
^ "Richard_Aoki" . Itsabouttimebpp.com. Retrieved 28 July 2010 .
^ Rosenfeld, Seth (20 August 2012). "Activist Richard Aoki named as informant" . San Francisco Chronicle .
^ Allah, Dasun, Black Panther Charles Barron Invades New York City Council , Hip Hop Wired , 11 March 2010
^ Snyder, Molly (25 February 2020). "Profiles in Milwaukee history: activist Lucille Berrien" . OnMilwaukee . Retrieved 29 April 2021 .
^ Fimrite, Peter (23 February 2005). "Park ranger killer's parole is delayed" . San Francisco Chronicle . Retrieved 23 October 2009 .
^ https://www.bop.gov/inmateloc/
^ Fimrite, Peter, William Lee Brent – former Black Panther hijacked jet to Cuba , San Francisco Chronicle , 20 November 2006
^ Grigsby, Karen. "Green Party Black Caucus Journal: Elaine Brown Withdraws From Green Party Presidential Race" . Gpblackcaucus.blogspot.com. Retrieved 28 July 2010 .
^ a b c Tillet, Salamishah (2 October 2015). "The Panthers' Revolutionary Feminism" . New York Times . Retrieved 20 February 2016 .
^ "Ex-Black Panther convicted of murder" . CNN . 9 March 2002.
^ Risen, Clay (17 November 2021). "Ed Bullins, Leading Playwright of the Black Arts Movement, Dies at 86" . The New York Times . ISSN 0362-4331 . Retrieved 15 October 2022 .
^ Kaufman, Michael T. "Stokely Carmichael, Rights Leader Who Coined 'Black Power,' Dies at 57" , New York Times , 16 November 1998. Accessed 27 March 2008. (alternate url)
^ a b Gordon, Larry, UCLA students memorialize 1969 Black Panther slayings , Los Angeles Times , 26 May 2010
^ a b c Haas, Jeffrey (2011). The Assassination of Fred Hampton: How the FBI and the Chicago Police Murdered a Black Panther . Chicago Review Press . ISBN 9781569767092 .
^ Kifner, John (2 May 1998). "Eldridge Cleaver, Black Panther Who Became G.O.P. Conservative, Is Dead at 62 , Cleavers Lieutenant and former Panther Bud Williams (mid 1970s) was shocked by the passing of his former brother" . The New York Times . Retrieved 15 May 2012 .
^ "Ex-Black Panther leader, convicted of killing cop, released from prison" . The Baltimore Sun . 4 March 2014.
^ Weber, Bruce (13 March 2011). "D.L. Cox, a Leader of Radicals During 1960s, Dies at 74" . The New York Times . Retrieved 15 March 2011 .
^ Modie, Neil, "As an Anti-war Candidate, Dixon Says he is no Spoiler" Seattle Post-Intelligencer , 9 March 2006
^ Zack, Jessica Werner,"The Black Panthers advocated armed struggle. Emory Douglas' weapon of choice? The pen ," San Francisco Chronicle 28 May 2007.
^ "Duren (B. Kwaku) papers" . Online Archive of California . Retrieved 27 June 2020 .
^ Kimberley, Margaret (31 July 2021). "Glen Ford's Journalism Fought for Black Liberation and Against Imperialism" . Truthout . Retrieved 9 January 2023 .
^ "New play celebrates Kent Ford, co-founder of Portland's Black Panther Party" . Oregon Public Broadcasting . Retrieved 15 October 2022 .
^ Hartle, Robert (2010). The Highs & Lows of Little Five: A History of Little Five Points . The History Press . ISBN 9781596298743 .
^ "Black Panther Founder to Teach Courses at U. New Mexico" . New York Times . Retrieved 2 October 2010 .
^ Mitchell, John (11 March 1988). "Ex-Panthers Reunite at Leader's Funeral" . Los Angeles Times . Retrieved 14 April 2019 .
^ Hunt, Emily (10 August 2011). "As Big as Ever: Over 40 years ago, Elbert 'Big Man' Howard helped found the Black Panthers. Now living in Sonoma County, he's still on the prowl" . North Bay Bohemian . Santa Rosa, California . Retrieved 23 February 2016 .
^ Shelton, Gwendolyn L. "Bobby James Hutton (1950–1968)" . The Encyclopedia of Arkansas History and Culture. Retrieved 17 December 2011 .
^ Moynihan, Colin, Oscar Nomination Caps Columbia Film Professor’s Long Journey , New York Times , 21 February 2008
^ Tobar, Hector (19 April 2013). "Judy Juanita and her 'Virgin Soul' " . Los Angeles Times .
^ "Magora Kennedy: Meet The 83-Year-Old Reverend And Stonewall Veteran" . The Advocate- . 14 December 2021. Retrieved 15 October 2022 .
^ Mitchell, Russ (21 October 2007). "The Incomparable Chaka Khan" . CBS News . Retrieved 21 February 2016 .
^ a b c Bass, Paul; Rae, Douglas W. (2009). Murder in the Model City: The Black Panthers, Yale, and the Redemption of a Killer . Basic Books . ISBN 9780786735853 .
^ Sabir, Wanda, 'Review – From the Bottom of the Heap: The Autobiography of Black Panther Robert Hillary King , San Francisco Bay View , 18 November 2008.
^ Robertson, Darryl (4 November 2016). "A Look Back At Black Panther Women Amid The Party's 50th Anniversary" . VIBE.com . Retrieved 15 October 2022 .
^ Bloom, Joshua; Martin, Waldo (2013). Black against Empire: The History and Politics of the Black Panther Party . University of California Press . pp. 249–257. ISBN 9780520953543 .
^ Stein, Mark A.; Basheda, Valarie (22 August 1989). "Huey Newton Found Shot to Death on Oakland Street: Black Panthers Founder Killed in High Drug Area" . Los Angeles Times . Retrieved 26 July 2013 .
^ "Kojo Nnamdi Biography" . The HistoryMakers. 30 January 2014. Retrieved 25 May 2019 .
^ Latifi, Ali Muhammad (3 February 2011). "Kojo Nnamdi: From Black Power Radical to D.C. Power Player" . Generation Progress. Retrieved 25 May 2019 .
^ McKinley Jr, James C. (23 November 1997). "A Black Panther's Mellow Exile: Farming in Africa" . The New York Times .
^ Mandel, William (1999). Saying No to Power: Autobiography of a 20th Century Activist and Thinker . Berkeley, California : Creative Arts Book Company. ISBN 9780887392863 .
^ Olsen, Jack (2001). Last Man Standing: The Tragedy and Triumph of Geronimo Pratt . Anchor Books . ISBN 9780385493680 .
^ Garcia, Michelle (4 December 2005). "For a Former Panther, Solidarity After the Storm" . Washington Post . Retrieved 11 June 2006 .
^ Lester, Paul (8 April 2011). "Nile Rodgers: 'Your music is your soul' " . The Guardian . Retrieved 21 February 2016 .
^ Abu-Jamal, Mumia (2004). We Want Freedom: A Life in the Black Panther Party . South End Press . pp. 194, 257. ISBN 9780896087187 .
^ Eppstein, Jason (4 December 1969). "A Special Supplement: The Trial of Bobby Seale" . The New York Review of Books . Retrieved 21 February 2016 .
^ Wright, Bruce C. T. (17 December 2021). "Russell 'Maroon' Shoatz, Former Black Liberation Army Soldier And Prison Abolitionist, Dies At 78" . Newsone. Retrieved 15 October 2022 .
^ Hevesi, Dennis. "Michael Tabor, Black Panther Who Fled to Algeria, Dies at 63" , The New York Times , October 23, 2010. Accessed October 15, 2022.
^ Rosenberg, Scott (6 July 1979). "Sociobiology Pioneer Joins Black Panthers" . The Harvard Crimson . The Harvard Crimson, Inc.
^ "Denise Oliver-Velez – She's Beautiful When She's Angry" . Shesbeautifulwhenshesangry.com. Retrieved 6 May 2017 .
^ Georgakas, Dan; Surkin, Marvin (1998). Detroit, I Do Mind Dying . South End Press . pp. 50, 73, 77. ISBN 9780896085718 .
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