While the party began with a heavily male-focused public image, women joined in massive numbers, reaching an estimated 60% to 70% of total membership by the decade’s turn. As male leaders faced intense law enforcement crackdowns, arrests, and deaths, women stepped up to run local chapters, direct national operations, and manage administrative ranks. As early as Feb. 1969 I attended meetings in several Panther chapters with themes of “Ending Male chauvinism in the Party” And as more women took positions we often talked about how the white “women”s liberation” movement mostly excluded input from Black and Brown women…and many women in the Panthers and the Young Lords ( our mostly Latino comrades) started using the word “Womanism” to separate themselves from what they felt was still a largely racist movement. Female members organized and operated the iconic Free Breakfast Program, free medical clinics, and ambulance services… Often still having male members do the “cooking and serving” Female members directed community schools like the Inter-Communal Youth Institute, offering holistic education and teaching children historical awareness. Notably Elaine Brown Served as the first and only chairwoman of the party from 1974 to 1977, guiding its political and social direction…This is not to say that we managed to completely “purge” the Black Panther Party of sexism…Unlike SNCC and CORE and most other Black Militant movements of the time …the Panther’s were not “College student based” we did a lot of recruiting on campus but most of us came from the streets and working class or below backgrounds this made it a real struggle to get ideas of sexual equality in the mix …but even then NONE of the other Black militant groups even talked about sexism and patriarchy and homophobia until the 80s. In that regard we were pioneers..IT’S BLACK PANTHER PARTY HISTORY AND LEGACY MONTH We learn a lot from the lessons of the past.
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