What We Don’t Learn About the Black Panther Party—but Should

By Adam Sanchez and Jesse Hagopian
Fifty years ago this month, the Black Panther Party was born. Its history holds vital lessons for today’s movement to confront racism and police violence, yet textbooks either misrepresent or minimize the significance of the Black Panthers. This local organizing that Panthers engaged in has been erased in the textbooks, yet it is precisely what won them such widespread support.