The original "Black Panther" party was formed in Lowndes County, Alabama during the violent voting rights struggle of the early 1960s. Evicted and embattled rural sharecroppers armed themselves to protect their families from the Klan. They formed a political party, separate from the segregationist "Dixiecrats," and chose a black panther as Party symbol (vs the white rooster of the local political machine).
Word of their grassroots resistance spread, but the Black Panther Party was nurtured thousands of miles west--in Oakland, terminus of the Southern Pacific railroad and gateway to Asia and the Pacific. During World War II, the Bay Area became a major defense industry site and Oakland became a prime destination for the Great Migration of African American refugees seeking better lives.
After the War, those dreams faded as racism reappeared in the urban environment, especially police excessive use of force. The Black Panther Party for Self-Defense was founded by two disillusioned college students who had arrived as children from the South.
A key reason Oakland became cradle of the Panthers is its arts and cultural community. In census reports, more residents listed employment in the creative sector than any other region.
Oakland thus became a center of Artivism for black resistance. That combination of disillusionment, passion, activism and art-making transformed the Black Panther movement, extending its cultural footprint across geography and generations, through visual arts, music, fashion, language, literature, film, and social media.