Reading Guide: "A Taste of Power" by Elaine Brown & The Black Panther Party
liberation lit - book club guide - feb. 2025
Elaine Brown’s A Taste of Power is a firsthand account of revolutionary struggle, radicalization, political awakening and the complexities of leadership within the most influential radical organizations in recent American History. As the only woman to lead the Black Panther Party, Brown provides a unique perspective on the movement’s inner workings, accomplishments, and internal conflicts.
A Taste of Power chronicles Elaine Brown’s journey from her early life to her rise through the ranks of the Black Panther Party. It details her experiences and conversations with figures like Huey Newton, and her part in shaping the party’s policies. It offers a look into the Black Panther Party’s political strategies, its emphasis on grassroots activism and community programs and the challenges of being a woman within male-dominated revolutionary spaces.
This reading guide is designed to help you engage with the book’s themes and historical context in a deeper way, whether you plan to read the book or are more interested in just exploring the key ideas, this guide provides reflection questions, additional resources and space for personal reflection and notes.
Resources:
The Black Panther Party Ten-Point Program (1966) - Detailed the goals of the Black Panther Party, “What We Want, What We Believe”. Available on blackpast.org
Black Power Mixtape 1967-1975 is a documentary that uses footage captured by Swedish journalists who filmed the Black Power Movement. It offers an outsider’s perspective on key figures and events, highlighting government repression and daily life for Black Americans. Modern artists like Erykah Badu provide commentary and draw connections between this time and modern movements. Available on Youtube.
Teaching Hard History Podcast - Season 3, Episode 15 - Titled “The Black Panther Party and the Transition to Black Power,” delves into the evolution from the civil rights movement into the era of Black Power focusing primarily on the Black Panther Party for Self-Defense. Historians Robyn Spencer-Antoine and Jakobi Williams discuss the party’s revolutionary ideology, Ten-Point Platform and survival programs. Available at learningforjustice.org.
“We said, this is it, we’re going to die today”: Interview with Elaine Brown of the BPP (1988) - In this interview, Elaine Brown reflects on a moment when she and her comrades faced the very real possibility of death. This interview provides insights into the mindset of the Black Panther Party during their struggle for liberation.
The Freedom Archives - A digital archive dedicated to preserving the history and legacy of various social justice movements. It holds an extensive collection of audio, video and documents that provide insight into the day to day newspapers, zines, and publications by the Black Panther Party. Available at search.freedomarchives.org.
Reflection Questions: A Taste of Power
Key Questions:
What were the political and social conditions in the U.S. during the rise of the Black Panther Party?
How did the BPP’s platform differ from other civil rights movements at the time?
How did Elaine Brown’s leadership challenge the expectations for women in revolutionary movements?
How do the goals of the Black Panther Party compare to today’s social justice movements?
What aspects of the BPP’s community programs (e.g., Free Breakfast Program) still influence activism today?
Which parts of A Taste of Power resonated most with you?
Were there moments that surprised you or changed your perspective?
Digging Deeper:
How does Elaine Brown’s decision to openly discuss the internal struggles of the Black Panther Party—such as sexism, drug use, and violence—challenge or complicate traditional narratives of the movement? In today’s era of cancel culture and public accountability, how do you think Elaine Brown’s candid revelations would be received? Should acknowledging the flaws of a revolutionary movement diminish it’s impact or can we hold space for both the achievements and imperfections?
How does Elaine Brown’s honesty regarding her personal struggles - such as wanting to be white, her romantic relationships and her privileged social circle - change your perception of her? Does this level of vulnerability make her story more relatable or does it disappoint you?
The BPP is most famous for it’s militancy, but they also led many groundbreaking social programs. What are some initiatives or actions that they took that surprised you? Has learning about these programs changed your perception of the Panthers and their role within the community?
Movements like the Black Panther Party have always been labeled as threats, met with government crackdowns, and misrepresented in the media. In the beginning of chapter 8 Elaine talks about J. Edgar Hoover and when he began to see the Panthers as a threat. Who do you think gets to decide what forms of resistance are acceptable and which are dangerous? What do you think was the tipping point that made the government see them as a serious danger? Was it their armed self-defense, their community programs, their growing influence, or something else? What does this tell us about what those in power fear most?
Hoover and COINTELPRO worked to dismantle the black panther Party, often by stoking fears around their supposed communist ties. Do you think framing the Panthers as a communist threat was an effective strategy for discrediting them? Within which communities do you think this propaganda worked the best? How do you see similar fear-stoking tactics used today (ex. the growing concern over foreign data policies)? How does creating an external enemy effect resistance movements? Why is this such an effective tactic?
Bobby Seale enforced strict discipline within the party, emphasizing cleanliness, exercise and weight loss. Do you think these rigid standards strengthened the Panthers as a movement or do you see them as invasive and restrictive? What part does physical discipline play in a revolutionary organization?
Elaine brown often ignored Huey Newton’s struggles with drug use, even though she candidly speaks about it affecting his leadership and personal well-being. Why do you think she, and others, chose to ignore or justify it? Do you see this as loyalty, denial, fear, something totally different?
Elaine describes the Panthers as an organization that did not function democratically but instead followed ‘democratic centralism,’ where a small leadership group dictated the movement’s direction. Do you think this was an effective structure for such a large and diverse movement? What are the benefits and risks of organizing this way in revolutionary movements?
After reading Elaine Brown’s A Taste of Power, how would you rate the book in terms of its ability to humanize the history of the Black Panther Party? Did it deepen your understanding of the movement and its complexities, or did it challenge your perception in ways that were unsettling and uncomfortable? Both? What aspects of the book stood out to you the most Elaine’s personal journey, the Party’s successes, or its internal struggles?