Bobby Seale is getting his own day and intersection named for him in Oakland this week.

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On Wednesday, Oct 22, Oakland city officials will recognize the Black Panther Party co-founder’s legacy and contributions to the city by renaming the intersection of Martin Luther King Jr. Way and 57th Street as “Bobby Seale Way” and designating the date as Bobby Seale Day. Wednesday’s commemoration will be hosted by Oakland rapper Mistah F.A.B. and Oakland mayor Barbara Lee will offer remarks. Seale and his family will be in attendance, said Ashlee Jemott, a staff member for Councilmember Zac Unger, who introduced the legislation. 

“Bobby Seale is a legendary Oaklander who has done so much not just for civil rights in Oakland but for community empowerment and civil rights throughout the country,” said Unger, who represents District 1, where the event will take place. “We have a proud legacy of honoring our elders and he more than deserves it.”

The community celebration will take place Wednesday, Oct. 7 from 5 to 7 p.m. at the corner of 57th Street and Martin Luther King Jr. Way. The intersection of 57th Street and Martin Luther King Jr. Way is blocks from where Seale grew up in North Oakland, and marks the location of the first party headquarters. 

Seale, chairman of the Black Panther Party, addresses a rally outside party headquarters in Oakland. On Wednesday, Oakland will rename a nearby intersection, at Martin Luther King Way and 57th Street, for Seale. Credit: AP Photo

Bobby Seale was born in Liberty, Texas, and his family moved to Oakland while he was a child. As a student at Merritt College, Seale joined with Huey Newton in 1966 to found the Black Panther Party. He led the party as chairman, helped develop the party’s legendary 10-point platform, and advocated for racial justice and against police brutality. In 1973, Seale ran for Oakland mayor on a ticket with fellow party member Elaine Brown, who ran for the city council. Seale lost to John Reading, Oakland’s last Republican mayor. 

October marks the 59th anniversary of the Black Panther Party’s founding and Wednesday is Seale’s 89th birthday. Sponsored by councilmember Unger, the legislation was supported unanimously by the rest of the council.

Wednesday’s events are the latest tribute to the legacy of the Black Panther Party in Oakland. In 2021, the city designated a stretch of Ninth Street near Mandela Parkway in West Oakland as “Dr. Huey P. Newton Way,” and, months later, sculptor Dana King unveiled her bust of Newton at the intersection. In June of this year, the city marked “Elaine Brown Way” at Seventh and Campbell streets in West Oakland to celebrate another prominent member of the party. West Oakland is also home to a “Women of the Black Panther Party” mural and mini museum, and a Black Panther Party museum, led by the Dr. Huey P. Newton Foundation, opened in downtown Oakland last year.  

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