Bobby Seale, co-founder of the Black Panther Party, spoke to students at Winston-Salem State recently and gave students a first hand account of the Panther’s formative days in Oakland, California.
Seale spoke at K.R. Williams auditorium on the WSSU campus as part of HBCU week. Seale explained to the large crowd present that the Black Panthers were “avid readers, researchers, and they knew the laws,” and contrary to popular belief, they were not protesting for “macho” reasons.
“We [Black Panthers] were perceived as terrorists, that we hated white folks and we were a threat to the internal security of the government. We did not hate white folks; we had some radical white friends that rallied with us. Even the free breakfast for school children program was considered a threat,” he said.
The Black Panther Party was founded by Bobby Seale and Huey P. Newton after the assassinations of prominent members of the African-American community, such as Malcom X and Medgar Evers. Seale said the Black Panther Party was created to organize the black community and fight for rights such as employment, housing, education, and against police brutality. Although these were the purposes and concerns of the party, misconceptions often were created and the Black Panther Party became a widely feared organization.
Seale said the Panthers didn’t break the law and wouldn’t let anyone break laws while they were involved with the organization.
“The Black Panthers were some of the most organized and well trained individuals,” Seale said..