By Caitlin Donohue
It’s possible that on December 3rd, 1969, when he was arrested for alleged death threats against President Richard Nixon, Black Panther Chief of Staff David Hilliard could not have predicted he’d have a lasting fashion legacy. It was near the height of the Panthers’ international freedom fighting activities. The group was involved in providing food, medical care and legal aid to underserved African-American communities- but in a time of serious governmental persecution, Hilliard was arrested on numerous occasions for everything from possession of a weapon in a public place to his participation in the Oakland police shoot out that killed his comrade Bobby Hutton.
“Hey Panther, where’d ya get that jacket?” A fashion show Friday’s got the answer
They were rebels, social leaders, badasses- and man, could they dress. The “Panther look”- berets, traditional African textiles and sharp leather jackets- were a hipper, sleeker activist chic than the haphazard “hippie” look prevalent at the time. Although they didn’t set out to be style icons, “the greatest threat to the internal security of the United States” (as J. Edgar Hoover memorably dubbed them) definitely made their mark on the fashion scene.
SF fashion designer Andrea Lamadora with her artistic inspiration, Black Panther David Hilliard
It’s a tricky business, commodifying a social movement, but in preparation for creating a clothing line based on the Panthers’ innate vogue, fashion designer Andrea Lamadora had the unique chance to learn from a key player in the movement- Hilliard himself. Her friendship with the activist gave her “the privilege of seeing the Black Panther Party archives, including never seen by the public images and photos of actual Panther clothing from the ‘60s and ‘70s,” Lamadora says. “I was immediately inspired to lend my creative style to this very important historical, political and cultural organization.” After the jump, what she came up with.