Ten-Point Program

The Ten-Point Program was co-authored by Huey P. Newton and Bobby Seale in October 1966. It served as the foundational manifesto for the newly formed Black Panther Party in Oakland, California. The document laid out the party's core ideological and practical goals for African American communities.

The document explicitly demands basic social, economic, and political rights for African Americans. Key demands included full employment, decent housing, and equitable education. It also famously demanded an immediate end to police brutality and the murder of Black people.

Huey P. Newton and Bobby Seale drafted the manifesto in October 1966. This timing coincided with the height of the Civil Rights Movement, reflecting a more militant shift toward self-defense and Black empowerment. It heavily influenced the party's community survival programs, like the Free Breakfast for Children initiative.

This phrase serves as the subtitle for the Ten-Point Program, dividing the document into practical demands ("What We Want") and underlying principles ("What We Believe"). This structure combined immediate material needs with a broader critique of systemic racism and capitalism. The "Beliefs" section often cited the U.S. Constitution and Declaration of Independence to justify their demands.