Former Black Panther Jamal Joseph reflects on Black Lives Matter - The Fifth Estate

The Black Panther Party, founded in 1966, was radical, revolutionary and often controversial.

The Panthers' rapid rise was similar in some ways to Black Lives Matter. The party built to be a watchdog, made waves and headlines. They said their message was to empower every day black Americans and to confront what they saw as an epidemic of police brutality.

But tensions with law enforcement eventually escalated and the Panthers, weakened by destructive counterintelligence activities, external attacks, legal problems, and internal schisms, rapidly declined as a political force.

Although the Black Panther Party is often associated with armed resistance, it also launched more than 35 Survival Programs and provided community help, such as education, medical clinics, legal aid, transportation assistance, ambulance service, and the manufacture and distribution of free shoes to poor people. Of particular note was the Free Breakfast Program for inner city kids, serving up to 20,000 meals a week.

Growing up in the Bronx, Jamal Joseph was only 15 when he joined the party. Today, he is a professor at Columbia University's School of The Arts and says that he was was excited and exhilarated by the hashtag #BlackLivesMatter.

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About the fifth estate : For four decades The Fifth Estate has been Canada's premier investigative documentary program. Hosts Bob McKeown, Gillian Findlay and Mark Kelley continue a tradition of provocative and fearless journalism. the fifth estate brings in-depth investigations that matter to Canadians – delivering a dazzling parade of political leaders, controversial characters and ordinary people whose lives were touched by triumph or tragedy.