The Black Panther Party Graphic Novel: Making Connections to the Past

'The Black Panther Party' Book Talk with Amber Certain from The New York Public Library on Vimeo.

The Black Panther Party: A Graphic Novel History by David F. Walker and Marcus Kwame Anderson is a great addition to any high school classroom. This graphic novel is great for introducing the Black Panther Party to students without any prior knowledge of it as well as offering deeper insights into the party and its key players that will keep students engaged and even wanting more.

Author David F. Walker explores the complicated and sordid legacy of the Black Panther Party focusing on significant events that took place during the Party's run, and explaining programs that had a significant impact on the Black community. He also writes about the extensive research he did while writing the book. Mini biographical vignettes shed light on key players that many readers might recognize by name but not know much about. Walker created an extensive bibliography at the end of the book which can further add to classroom discussion. This graphic novel is text heavy but Marcus Kwame Anderson’s bright, sharp and detailed illustrations help piece the narrative together, moving the story along seamlessly.

Even though the Black Panther Party ended, the struggles and injustices it fought against are still present today. This title is a great addition to a classroom library for independent reading, additional supplemental reading during the school year, or a wonderful and stimulating book club read, especially for students who are interested in social justice and activism. I would also suggest pairing this book with Stamped : Racism, Antiracism, and You by Jason Reynolds which discusses the history of racist and antiracist ideas in America.

The resource list below highlights not only some of Walker’s suggestions, but other resources to round out this amazing title and help students dive deeper into these topics.

Schomburg Resources

#SchomburgSyllabus

This project archives Black-authored and Black-related online educational resources to document Black studies, movements, and experiences in the twenty-first century. In connecting these web-archived resources to the Schomburg Center’s own unique materials, the project honors and recognizes the source and strength of Black self-education practices, collective study, and librarianship. The #SchomburgSyllabus is curated by Schomburg Center staff and organized into 27 themes, including the Black Panther Party, to foster a greater understanding of the Black experience.

Online Exhibits

Through photography these online exhibits visually introduce students to the history, arts, fashion, and activism of the Black Power Movement.

• Black Power! The Movement and Legacy (part of Google Arts and Culture) 
• Ready for the Revolution: Education, Arts, and Aesthetics of the Black Power Movement (part of Google Arts and Culture) 
• Black Power Exhibition Resource Guide – A guide to complement the Black Power Exhibition (Schomburg Center)

NYPL Digital Collections

​​​​​​Poster Collection

• Three of the posters in this collection specifically highlight Black Panther members including Fred Hampton, (Chicago Chapter) Sundiata Acoli and Assata Shakur and the Panther 21 (Harlem Chapter of the Black Panthers)
• Suggested Title: Celebrate People's History: The Poster Book of Resistance and Revolutionby Josh MacPhee and Rebecca Solnit
• Have a discussion about the power of images and if posters and advertisements still have the same influence as they had in the past.

United States Social Political Button Collection

• Reach out to your local library branch to collaborate and use this collection to host a button program with students, engaging them in something creative while discussing the power of voices, activism and fashion.

Books

Young Adult

Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and Youby Jason Reynolds

A history of racist and antiracist ideas in America, from their roots in Europe until today, adapted from the National Book Award winner Stamped from the Beginning.

Revolution in Our Time: The Black Panther Party's Promise to the Peopleby Kekla Magoon

In this comprehensive, inspiring, and all-too-relevant history of the Black Panther Party, Kekla Magoon introduces readers to the Panthers' community activism, grounded in the concept of self-defense, which taught Black Americans how to protect and support themselves in a country that treated them like second-class citizens. For too long the Panthers' story has been a footnote to the civil rights movement rather than what it was: a revolutionary socialist movement that drew thousands of members—mostly women—and became the target of one of the most sustained repression efforts ever made by the U.S. government against its own citizens.

The River and the Rockby Kekla Magoon

In 1968 Chicago, fourteen-year-old Sam Childs is caught in a conflict between his father's nonviolent approach to seeking civil rights for African Americans and his older brother, who has joined the Black Panther Party.

Fire in the Streetsby Kekla Magoon

In the aftermath of Dr. King's assassination in 1968, Chicago fourteen-year-old Maxie longs to join the Black Panthers, whether or not her brother Raheem, ex-boyfriend Sam, or her friends like it, and is soon caught up in the violence of anti-war and civil rights demonstrations.

Into the Street: A Young Person's Visual History of Protest in the United Statesby Marke Bieschke

This lively book guides readers through the art and history of significant protests, sit-ins, and collective acts of resistance throughout US history. Photos, artwork, signs, and other visual elements highlight the history of social action, from American Indian resistance to colonists through Black Lives Matter and Women's Marches.

Adult

Want to Start a Revolution? Radical Women in the Black Freedom Struggle by Dayo F. Gore

Uncovers the often overlooked stories of the women who shaped the Black freedom struggle.

Bev Grant: Photography 1968-1972 by Bev Grant

This is the first monograph on Brooklyn-based photographer Bev Grant's (born 1942) extensive archive of photographs made from 1968 to 1972, when she was on the frontlines as a feminist and political activist. Grant began taking photographs as part of her participation in demonstrations with the Women’s Movement, such as No More Miss America in Atlantic City in 1968 and The Jeannette Rankin Brigade in Washington, DC, in 1968. As a member of the film collective New York Newsreel, she gained access to the Young Lords Party, the Black Panther Party and the Poor People's Campaign.

My People are Rising: Memoir of a Black Panther Party Captainby Aaron Lloyd Dixon

In an era of stark racial injustice, Aaron Dixon dedicated his life to revolution, founding the Seattle chapter of the Black Panther Party in 1968 at age nineteen. In My People Are Rising, he traces the course of his own radicalization, and that of a generation. Through his eyes, we witness the courage and commitment of the young men and women who rose up in rebellion, risking their lives in the name of freedom. My People are Rising is an unforgettable tale of their triumphs and tragedies, and the enduring legacy of Black Power.

Black Panther: The Revolutionary Art of Emory Douglas by Emory Douglas

Captures the provocative posters and innovative graphics of the Black Panther Party from the mid-1960s through much of the 1970s as revealed in the dramatic work of artist Emory Douglas, the art editor and later Minister of Culture for the Black Panther newspaper, revealing some of the paper's iconic images, including signature portraits of party founders Huey P. Newton and Bobby Seale.

Suggestion

Have students look at the artwork above to inspire them to recreate an image and idea to showcase their stance on a subject or social justice matter that is important to them. 

Look for Me in the Whirlwind: From the Panther 21 to 21st-Century Revolutions by Sekou Odinga

In 1969, 21 members of the militant New York branch of the Black Panther Party were rounded up and indicted on multiple charges of violent acts and conspiracies. The membership of the NY 21, which includes the mother of Tupac Shakur, is largely forgotten and unknown. Their legacy, however reflected upon here in this special edition, provides essential truths which have remained largely hidden.

The Young Lords: A Radical Historyby Johanna Fernandez

The Young Lords started as a street gang in Chicago, but eventually grew into a human and civil rights organization, inspired by the grassroots tactics of the Black Panthers.

Drawing on oral histories, archival records and a huge cache of newly released police records, this definitive history of the Young Lords, chronicles their rise and fall as a political organization and demonstrates how they redefined the character of protest and the color of politics.

Film and Video

Oral History Video with Aaron Dixon (The History Makers)

Captures the provocative posters and innovative graphics of the Black Panther Party from the mid-1960s through much of the 1970s as revealed in the dramatic work of artist Emory Douglas, the art editor and later Minister of Culture for the Black Panther newspaper, revealing some of the paper's iconic images, including signature portraits of party founders Huey P. Newton and Bobby Seale.

Judas and the Black Messiah

Offered a plea deal by the FBI, William O'Neal infiltrates the Illinois chapter of the Black Panther Party to gather intelligence on Chairman Fred Hampton.

Eyes on the Prize: America's Civil Rights Movement

Volume 5 - Power! (1966-1968)

Across America, the call for "Black Power" mobilizes communities for change in strikingly different ways as told through the perspectives of Black Panther Party members, teachers, and politicians.

Eyes on the Prize; Interview with William O’Neal (American Archive of Public Broadcasting)

Interview with William O'Neal conducted by Blackside for "Eyes on the Prize II." O'Neal discusses being recruited to be an informant for the FBI in Chicago, joining the Black Panthers as an informant, and giving them information about the Black Panthers' activities and Fred Hampton.

Additional

Library of Congress

• keyword search “Black Panther Party”

Oakland Museum of CA

• All Power to the People: Black Panthers at 50: Videos and resources to share with students

National Museum of African American History and Culture

• The Black Panther Party: Challenging Police and Promoting Social Change

Museum of the City of New York 

• Activist New York: The Activist New York website explores the history of activism in New York City from the 1600s through today. Exploring issues of political and civil rights, religious freedom, immigration, gender equality, environmental advocacy, and economic rights—and drawing on artifacts, images, and interactive components—Activist New York provides a sweeping look at the passions and conflicts that underlie the city’s history of agitation and the New Yorkers who have mobilized to fight for the city they want to see. 
  
   
• Power to all Oppressed People: The Young Lords in New York 1969-1976 

Local Activist Groups

Black Youth Project 100 (BYP100): A member-based organization of Black youth activists creating justice and freedom for all Black people. 

Teens Take Charge: Elevating students’ voices in the education conversation.

The New York Civil Liberties Union (NYCLU): is one of the nation’s foremost defenders of civil liberties and civil rights. 

• Youth Activism: NYCLU works with youth organizers across New York State to ensure that young people know their rights, know how to access those rights and learn how to effectively organize around civil rights and civil liberties in their schools and communities. 

Book summaries provided via NYPL’s catalog, which draws from multiple sources. Click through to each book’s title for more.