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Huey Newton Facts & Worksheets

Huey Newton was an African-American political activist and co-founder of the Black Panther Party.

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Huey Newton was an African-American political activist and co-founder of the Black Panther Party. He had a doctorate degree in social philosophy. He was murdered during a drug deal in Oakland, California.

See the fact file below for more information on the Huey Newton or alternatively, you can download our 24-page Huey Newton worksheet pack to utilise within the classroom or home environment.

Key Facts & Information

Early Life and Education

  • Huey Percy Newton was born in Monroe, Louisiana on February 17, 1942 during World War II.
  • He was born to Walter Newton, who was a Baptist preacher, and Armelia Johnson.
  • He was named after the former Governor of Louisiana, Huey Long.
  • During the second wave of the Great Migration, he and his family migrated to Oakland, California in 1945.
  • Newton’s family moved a lot when he was young but only within the San Francisco Bay Area.
  • Newton did not excel in school and was arrested multiple times when he was a teenager.
  • He stated in his autobiography entitled Revolutionary Suicide that his high school education did not awaken in him “a desire to learn more or to question.”
  • He graduated high school without knowing how to read.
  • He graduated from Oakland Technical High School in 1959.
  • He taught himself how to read later on.
  • Newton attended Merritt College and completed an Associate of Arts degree in 1966.
  • He joined the Civil Rights Movement upon learning more about his community.
  • He earned a bachelor’s degree at the University of California, Santa Cruz in 1974.
  • In 1980, he earned his doctorate degree in social philosophy, also at UC Santa Cruz.
  • Newton was a member of Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity.

Founding The Black Panther Party

  • As he became a member of the Afro-American Association (AAA) and the Phi Beta Sigma fraternity, Beta Tau chapter, Newton read more on works of free thinkers and cultural theorists.
  • He then developed a Marxist perspective and began his involvement in political organizations.
  • He met Bobby Seale at Merritt College in 1961 and the two co-founded the Black Panther Party for Self Defense, now known as the Blank Panther Party, in October 1966.
  • They founded the party after Malcolm X was assassinated and Matthew Johnson, an unarmed African-American teenager, was shot and killed by San Francisco police.
  • Newton was the Minister of Defense of the party while Seale was the Chairman.
  • The Black Panther Party was an African-American political organization that was incepted on the core practice of monitoring police activities and opposing police brutality through armed Panther patrols in Oakland and surrounding cities.
  • At the time, a significant population of African-Americans had migrated to the West and the North during the Great Migration.
  • The party fought for the right of self-defense for African Americans in the US.
  • It then evolved into a Marxist revolutionary organization.

John Frey Shooting

  • The Black Panthers clashed with local police and the opposing groups became involved in several shoot-outs.
  • On October 28, 1967, a shoot-out between the Panthers and Oakland police resulted in Newton being wounded and charged with shooting a police officer named John Frey to death.
  • In September 1968, Huey Newton was convicted of voluntary manslaughter for the murder of Frey. He was given a 2 to 15 year prison sentence.
  • Protests against his imprisonment arose. The popular slogan “Free Huey” was the battle cry in the rallies.
  • He was freed from prison in 1970 after his conviction was rescinded.

Renouncing Political Violence

  • In the wake of his release, he announced that the party would pursue a nonviolent path.
  • The Black Panther Party founded the Oakland Community School which provided education to 150 underprivileged children.
  • The party also established the Free Breakfast for Children Program, health clinics, and other socialist community programs.
  • The Black Panther Party grew to have over 2,000 members in major cities across the country including New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, and Seattle.
  • Newton met his wife Fredrika Newton in 1970. Fredrika was also a member of the BPP. They got married in 1981.
  • In 1982, the Black Panther Party was disbanded.
  • In 1989, Newton faced embezzlement charges and was accused of misappropriating state aid intended for the Oakland Community School. He was sentenced to six months in jail.
  • His autobiography Revolutionary Suicide was published in 1973.
  • In 1974, he was arrested and charged with assault and murder of a prostitute.
  • Newton was released on bail and fled with his girlfriend Fredrika to Cuba shortly thereafter.
  • He returned to the United States in 1977 and was freed after two hung juries.

Death and Legacy

  • His dissertation at UC Santa Cruz entitled “War Against the Panthers: A Study of Repression in America” was later published as a book.
  • In 1989, Newton was killed at 47 years old.
  • He was shot by Tyrone Robinson, a Black Guerilla Family member, over a drug deal dispute in Oakland, California.
  • In 1993, Fredrika Newton established the Huey P. Newton Foundation together with David Hilliard.
  • The Huey P. Newton Foundation is a nonprofit organization that organizes community-based programs for promoting literacy and health awareness, among other things.

Huey Newton Worksheets

This is a fantastic bundle which includes everything you need to know about Huey Newton across 24 in-depth pages. These are ready-to-use Huey Newton worksheets that are perfect for teaching students about Huey Newton who was an African-American political activist and co-founder of the Black Panther Party. He had a doctorate degree in social philosophy. He was murdered during a drug deal in Oakland, California.

Complete List Of Included Worksheets

  • Huey Newton Facts
  • Newton’s Introduction
  • Newton Crossword
  • What’s It Called?
  • Event Sequence
  • Founder Panther
  • Black Panther Party
  • Huey’s Arrests
  • Huey’s Impact
  • Huey Says
  • Slogan For Freedom

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Use With Any Curriculum

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