April 3, 1968: 56 years ago, April 3 1968, heavily armed Oakland police demanded entry [...]

56 years ago, April 3 1968, heavily armed Oakland police demanded entry into St. Augustine’s Episcopal Church, where the Black Panther Party was holding a meeting, claiming reports of a gunman in the area. After a tense standoff, Father Earl Neil refused the police entry

Earl Neil was ordained as an Episcopal minister in 1960. Prior to working in Oakland, he had helped organize the historic Selma to Montgomery March. After a parishioner brought him to visit Huey P. Newton in jail, he offered the Panthers the church as a meeting and event space

Neil was a persistent ally of the Panthers (who gave him the title “Minister of Religion”) helping bridge the gap between the mostly young militants and his largely older congregation. St. Augustine’s hosted Panther weddings, community programs, & funerals
https://t.co/GMUdRKuvpq

Days after the standoff, Neil would hold the first such funeral: a joint ceremony for Martin Luther King Jr. and the Panthers’ Lil’ Bobby Hutton, murdered on April 4th and 6th, respectively. He went on to officiate funerals for George Jackson & Huey Newton
https://t.co/LXW5iD1FCF

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