By Historical Wire Tap | Pan-African News Blog

In the late 1960s and early 1970s, as Black communities across the United States struggled under the weight of poverty, police brutality, and systemic neglect, a new kind of revolution was taking place—not with guns, but with groceries.

The Black Panther Party for Self-Defense, founded in 1966 by Huey P. Newton and Bobby Seale, is often remembered for its bold stance against police violence. However, one of its most profound and impactful contributions came through its community survival programs, particularly the Free Breakfast for Children Program.

At its peak, the Black Panther Party was feeding over 20,000 children every day before they went to school. Across over 30 cities in America, from Oakland to Chicago to New York, the Panthers operated kitchens, coordinated volunteers, raised funds, and ensured that Black children—often living in food deserts—got at least one nutritious meal per day.

The significance of this work can’t be overstated. The U.S. federal government had no such widespread program for feeding poor children before the Panthers stepped in. Their success shamed the government into action, pressuring officials to begin funding school breakfast programs across the country.

But the Panthers’ ability to outperform the government didn’t go unnoticed. J. Edgar Hoover, head of the FBI, infamously labeled the Free Breakfast Program “the most dangerous threat” to national security. Not because it was violent—but because it was effective. Feeding hungry children built trust, loyalty, and consciousness in the Black community, especially among the next generation. It was revolution with real results.

In response, the federal government intensified its war on the Panthers. Under the FBI’s COINTELPRO (Counter Intelligence Program), chapters were raided, leaders were harassed, infiltrated, and assassinated, and propaganda was used to smear the Party. The goal: stop the Panthers not because of what they destroyed, but because of what they built.

The malicious campaign succeeded in undermining the Party’s infrastructure—but it could not erase their legacy. Today, we see echoes of the Panthers in mutual aid networks, school lunch programs, and grassroots health clinics. The idea that the people can care for themselves outside the state—especially Black people—was the most dangerous idea of all.

In the Pan-African spirit, we must study and honor this legacy. The Black Panther Party showed that liberation isn’t only about resisting power—it’s about creating systems that make the existing ones obsolete. When the people are fed, informed, and unified, no empire can stand against them.