Fredrika Newton, head of The Dr. Huey P. Newton Foundation and Newton’s widow, will give Bryn Mawr College’s annual Black History Month keynote address at 7 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 28, in the Great Hall of Old Library.
Fredrika and David Hilliard, former Chief of Staff of the Black Panther Party, founded the foundation in 1995. In the years since, it has supported the renaming of a stretch of Ninth Street in Oakland to Dr. Huey P. Newton Way, the installation of a memorial bust of Newton at the intersection of Dr. Huey P. Newton Way and Mandela Parkway, and the creation of the Black Panther Party Museum in Oakland.
Fredrika’s talk is titled “Revolutionary Love: Inside the Black Panther Party,” which she describes as “a personal story that looks back on her partnering with Huey Newton and of how the Party’s activism was based on helping communities of color and all people’s lives get better with improved services and a ‘see a problem, create a solution’ mindset.”
More about the Dr. Huey P. Newton Foundation (from their website):
The Mission of the Dr. Huey P. Newton Foundation is to preserve and promulgate the history, ideals, and legacy of the Black Panther Party and its founder, Dr. Huey P. Newton. In prior years we have developed and distributed educational materials, established educational conferences and forums, and maintained and exhibited historical archives.
Over 25 years since the founding of the Foundation, we have a new public history vision that includes a monument, pop-up exhibit, and museum all dedicated to the Black Panther Party. We are bringing the Panther legacy to the people while carving out a permanent space for our history in Oakland. The spirit of Huey lives on!
Black History Month 2025
The student group Sisterhood* works with the Enid Cook Center in taking the lead on much of Bryn Mawr’s Black History Month programming with special support from The President’s Office. Many departments and offices contribute to the month’s programming including Conferences and Events, Communications, The Impact Center, Alumnae/i Relations and Development, LITS, Dining Services, Africana Studies, and more.