Black Panther's Actual Inspiration is More Complicated Than Fans Realize
In Marvel Comics, Black Panther’s name has always been inextricably tied to the Black Panther political party. A common bit of trivia that often circulates among comic book fans is that Black Panther the superhero was created before the Black Panther Party for Self-Defense (BPP). This is only partly true, while Marvel’s Black Panther made his debut months before the formation of the Black Panthers, the use of the black panther as a symbol for Black empowerment predated, and more importantly influenced, both the superhero and the political party.
Debuting in July of 1966, Stan Lee and Jack Kirby’s Black Panther made his first appearance in Fantastic Four #52 during a time of social uprising for Black people in America. The Civil Rights movement was having an impact on government as well as culture. Kirby recognized the lack of representation for Black superhero fans and drew up an ultimately rejected pitch for a new character called Coal Tiger. The character was overhauled with Lee and renamed Black Panther, however how the duo arrived at that name is still somewhat of a mystery.
Related: The FUTURE Black Panther Has A Unique Link To His Comic Book Past
One theory of the name's origin is the Black Panther Party of the Lowndes County Freedom Organization, as outlined by TheWrap. Formed in 1965, the LCFO was headed by Stokely Carmichael, later known as Kwame Ture, a widely known organizer for civil rights and the man who popularized the notion of “Black power.” They chose the black panther as their symbol in homage to the mascot of the historically Black institution, Clark College (now Clark Atlanta University). Lee and Kirby’s tendency to borrow from current events of the time supports this theory. Another possibility is
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