Sources -> https://www.blackenterprise.com/black-panther-party-resurges-at-philadelphia-ice-protect/

https://archive.ph/a8U52#selection-931.0-965.286

Excerpt of the archive article:

As the Trump administration increases the presence of federal agents in U.S. cities, a local group identifying as part of the Black Panther Party for Self-Defense has become more active in Philadelphia.

The group says it is a resurgence of the militant Black power group dating back to the 1960s, and has been trained by some of the original party’s surviving members. Several attended an anti-ICE protest Wednesday at Philadelphia City Hall, carrying military-style weapons.

They say they’re legally permitted to carry firearms and are showing up as a response to violence from the Trump administration. The group has been holding regular weekly free food programs in North Philadelphia for several years, according to 39-year-old Paul Birdsong of West Philadelphia, who identifies himself as the Black Panther Party’s national chairman.

Birdsong and others attended the Philly protest one day after Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer Jonathan Ross shot and killed 37-year-old Renee Nicole Good in Minneapolis.

“That wouldn’t have happened if we were there,” Birdsong said. “Not a single person would have gotten touched.”

Millions of people have watched videos of the shooting online, sparking national protests. The Trump administration quickly defended the shooter, with J.D. Vance asserting Ross has “absolute immunity” and “was doing his job.” Some have rejected Vance’s suggestion that Ross couldn’t be tried by the state, and Minnesota leaders Friday renewed their calls for state involvement in an investigation of the shooting.

Birdsong said the group wants to see ICE abolished and the Trump administration held accountable.

“You got people that are part of a cabal, that are self serving … and they prey on the common folks of the United States,” Birdsong said.

A free food program

Birdsong said he was recruited by members of the Black Panther Party in the wake of the 2020 police killing of George Floyd, and he listed several surviving elders of the group as mentors. The Philly chapter has “less than 100″ members, he said, though he declined to provide more detail.

On Friday evening, Birdsong and several other Black Panther Party members set up a pop-up food pantry outside Church of the Advocate at the corner of 18th and Diamond Streets in North Philadelphia.

The members laid out bananas, grapes, salad, romaine lettuce, cherry tomatoes, apples, pears, celery, peppers, and mushrooms on folding tables.

They added bread, Tastykakes — immediately popular with passing children — canned food, and hygiene items like shampoo, COVID-19 test kits, and adult undergarments. On another table were children’s clothes and a large pot of chicken soup, all near a banner with the Black Panthers logo.

Birdsong said the money to buy the food comes from members’ own paychecks, as well as donations from people in the community.

“It really helps out,” said Dawn Henkins, 60, who lives nearby. She said it’s especially helpful for older people who are living on a fixed income. “The brothers can help people — they are here for the people," Henkins said.

The Black Panthers previously held food programs at 33rd and Cecil B. Moore, and at Jefferson Square Park, Birdsong said. More recently, the group was able to move into 2123 N. Gratz St. — a location that Birdsong says once was a headquarters for the original Black Panther Party Philadelphia chapter.

The original Black Panther Party was founded by Bobby Seale and Huey P. Newton in Oakland, California in 1966 and was active nationally until the early 1980s. The group formed to fight against police brutality and quickly evolved to promote other social changes including prison reform and access to education, food, and healthcare, according to the National Museum of African American History and Culture.