By How The Black Panther Party Transformed Community Care
In January 1969, the Black Panther Party (BPP) launched the Free Breakfast for School Children Program at St. Augustine’s Church in Oakland, CA. This initiative was a direct response to food insecurity in Black communities and the government’s neglect.
NEW YORK – CIRCA 1970: A woman sits on a bench outside the Black Panther office in Harlem circa 1970 in New York City, NY. Pictured in the window are Panther founders Huey P. Newton and Bobby Seale. (Photo by Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images)
Each morning, Black Panther volunteers arrived as early as 4-5 AM to prepare fresh, nutritious meals—eggs, grits, toast, fruit, and milk—ensuring children started their day with full stomachs.
The program quickly spread across the country. By the end of 1969, the BPP was operating at least 45 breakfast programs in cities like Chicago, New York, and Los Angeles, feeding over 10,000 children daily.
The Panthers recognized a fundamental truth: a hungry child cannot learn. They saw how poverty affected Black children’s ability to focus in school and took direct action by providing free, healthy breakfasts before class.
But the government didn’t see this as a public good—it saw a threat. The FBI’s COINTELPRO targeted the program, raiding kitchens, intimidating volunteers, and spreading misinformation to discredit the initiative. Despite these attacks, the Panthers remained committed to feeding children.
FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover even labeled the Free Breakfast Program “the greatest threat to internal security”—not because it was dangerous, but because it proved the Panthers’ ability to organize and uplift their communities.
The impact was undeniable.
Teachers noticed improvements in students’ focus, behavior, and academic performance. Parents found relief knowing their children had reliable access to food.
The Black Panthers weren’t just resisting oppression; they were building systems of care. Their Free Breakfast Program laid the foundation for today’s government-funded school meal programs.
In response to the Panthers’ success, the U.S. government expanded its own school meal initiatives. By 1975, the National School Breakfast Program (NSBP) received permanent funding, heavily influenced by the groundwork the BPP had already laid.
However, FBI repression took its toll. Many Panther-run breakfast programs shut down in the early 1970s. Seattle’s chapter held on until 1977, one of the last to close. By 1982, the Black Panther Party had officially disbanded.
Yet, their legacy endures.
The Black community has a long history of building and rebuilding in the face of systemic destruction.
We created the Black Panther Party—offering free breakfast programs, healthcare clinics, and community defense—only to be labeled a threat and dismantled by COINTELPRO. But their impact remains.
We built Black Wall Street in Tulsa—a thriving center of Black businesses, banks, and schools—only to see it burned to the ground in 1921. Yet, Black people rebuilt.
Time and again, we have built our own communities, economies, and institutions, only to face destruction and interference. But no matter how many times they’ve tried to erase us, we rise again.
Consider the pattern:
Marcus Garvey’s movement for Black economic independence? Targeted and dismantled by the FBI.
Black banks and businesses? Undermined by redlining, racist policies, and economic exclusion.
Black-led movements today? Still surveilled, criminalized, and discredited.
Despite this, we persist.
We founded HBCUs when we were barred from white institutions. Even with decades of underfunding, they continue to produce some of the greatest Black leaders.
Towns like Rosewood, FL, Seneca Village, NY (now Central Park), and Oscarville, GA were wiped out—Black landowners violently displaced by racist mobs or government intervention.
Yet, they have never destroyed our spirit.
Black excellence isn’t just about survival—it’s about creation, innovation, and resilience.
We are still here. We are still building. Whether it’s buying Black, supporting Black-owned media, or launching new schools and tech spaces, we continue to reclaim our power.
They fear Black unity because they know what happens when we organize. But history has proven one thing: no matter how many times they try to stop us, WE DON’T STOP.
Keep creating. Keep supporting. Keep building.
They can’t erase us.
What's your reaction?
Excited
0
Happy
0
In Love
0
Not Sure
0
Silly
0
