View of American political and social activist, Black Panther Minister of Defense Huey Newton (1942 - 1989) as he sits at a table during an unspecified event, circa 1970. (Photo by David Fenton/Getty Images)
Roommates Dr. Huey P. Newton, one of the Co-Founders of The Black Panther Party, now has a street renamed after him just less than 2 miles away from the Panther’s former headquarters in West Oakland. On 9th Street at the intersection of Mandela Parkway in Oakland is now Dr. Huey P. Newton Way! This unveiling occurred yesterday on what would have been his 79th birthday. City and community leaders and some former party members attended the event as well as Fredrika Newton, Huey’s wife, was filled with joy at the event. ABC News 7 covered the event, and Frederika spoke to the reporter and said,”I’m overwhelmed. It’s our first tangible result of so much effort and not the last.”
Xavier Buck, Deputy Director of the Dr. Huey P. Newton Foundation, also spoke out. He said,” Huey made Oakland a place for revolutionary organizations to come together.There’s a reason why we’re renaming Huey P. Newton Way so many years later after he died in 1989. His name was demonized by the media. He created the most popular revolutionary organization of the 20th century.” It’s also reported that broadcast journalist and sculptor, Dana King will be creating a sculpture of Huey on Mandela Parkway that is set to be completed in October!
The timing of the event comes at a perfect time. Not only is it long overdue, but with the film, “Judas And The Black Messiah,” many people are doing research on the organization. The film is about the betrayal of Fred Hampton. Fred was the chairman of the Illinois chapter of the Black Panther Party in the late-1960s headquartered in Chicago, and he died at the hands of the FBI due to cooperation from William O’Neal, who was an FBI informant.
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