Evidence of Intimidation & Fascist Crimes by USA: The War on the Black Panther Party 1968 - 1969
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Curationist Object DescriptionCreated in 2010 and originally published in the illustrated book Edible Secrets: A Food Tour of Classified U.S. History, this silkscreen poster reflects the enduring legacy of the Black Panther Party's visual language, decades after its most active period. Designed by graphic artist Michael Hoerger, it exemplifies how contemporary Black printmakers have drawn on the Panther aesthetic to create resistance art that highlights the ongoing struggles faced by Black Americans. Hoerger's use of stark, bold, black-and-white imagery echoes the Party's militant visual style, particularly the work of Emory Douglas, the Black Panther Party's Minister of Culture, who helped shape the organization's iconic symbolism.
By visualizing the impact of strategic police violence against the Black Panther Party in its early years, from 1968 to 1969, Hoerger not only honors the Panthers' resistance but also engages with what Morgan State University Professor Dr. Jared A. Ball refers to as the Party's "emancipatory journalistic ethic." The poster's primary source is the Black Panther Party Community News Service, the Party's self-published weekly newspaper, which was central to its autonomous media strategy.
In the face of state repression and premature death at the hands of the police, the Panthers used self-published media to foster community solidarity and construct counternarratives that challenged dominant white American portrayals of the organization as a "terrorist" group. Unapologetically naming the U.S. government as a fascist force, this poster belongs to the lineage of emancipatory political graphics that extend the Party's radical call to action through visual means.
By visualizing the impact of strategic police violence against the Black Panther Party in its early years, from 1968 to 1969, Hoerger not only honors the Panthers' resistance but also engages with what Morgan State University Professor Dr. Jared A. Ball refers to as the Party's "emancipatory journalistic ethic." The poster's primary source is the Black Panther Party Community News Service, the Party's self-published weekly newspaper, which was central to its autonomous media strategy.
In the face of state repression and premature death at the hands of the police, the Panthers used self-published media to foster community solidarity and construct counternarratives that challenged dominant white American portrayals of the organization as a "terrorist" group. Unapologetically naming the U.S. government as a fascist force, this poster belongs to the lineage of emancipatory political graphics that extend the Party's radical call to action through visual means.
National Museum of African American History and Culture Object Description
This is a timeline poster about violence and killings against Black Panther members by the police. This rectangular poster consists of rows of squares that mark the days of each month. Various squares are blacked out or filled with color or patterns. These colors and patterns correspond to a legend at the bottom of the poster. Scattered throughout the poster are small black and white vignettes of individuals who were persecuted by the police. Text at the top of the poster reads "Evidence of Intimated & Fascist Crimes by USA/ The war on the Black Panther Party 1968-1969." On the poster's bottom margin in the right corner is text that reads "Source: The Black Panther Black Community News Service."
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All Works in Curationist’s archives can be reproduced and used freely. How to attribute this Work:
Michael Hoerger, Evidence of Intimidation & Fascist Crimes by USA: The War on the Black Panther Party 1968 - 1969, 2010. Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture. This timeline poster exposes police brutality against the Black Panther Party, rendered in the Party's bold and militant visual style. CC0.
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