Many people have heard of the Black Panther Party. Some know the Party’s history as a movement for the social, political, economic, and spiritual upliftment of people of colour – but few know the story of the Party’s backbone: the women. It’s estimated that six out of ten Panther Party members were women. While these remarkable women of all ages and diverse backgrounds were making headlines agitating, protesting, and organising, off-stage these same women were building communities, providing food, housing, education, healthcare, and more. Comrade Sisters
is their story. The photos are by Stephen Shames, who at the time was a 20-year- old college student at Berkeley. Completely trusted by the BPP, Shames took intimate, behind-the-scenes photographs that fully portrayed Party members’ lives. Ericka Huggins was an early Party member and leader along with Bobby Seale and Huey Newton. Her moving text shares what drew so many women to the Party and focuses on their monumental work on behalf of the most vulnerable citizens. Most importantly, the book includes contributions from over 50 former women members or their families – some well-known, others not – who vividly recall their personal experiences from that time.