BPP Visit to China

In 1971, Huey Newton, the BPP Minister of Defense, asked Zhou Enlai, the Premier of the People's Republic of China, to arrange a Black Panther delegation to visit China. The Panthers had been scheduled to visit China prior to U.S. President Richard Nixon's trip. but the CIA did not want the Black Panthers to be in China during Nixon's time there. Bert Small and the BPP delegation arrived in the spring of 1972 as guests of the Chinese government for seven weeks. Masai Hewitt, BPP Minister of Education, and Emory Douglas, Minister of Culture, led the delegation, which also consisted of Black Panther members and community supporters from throughout the United States. On March 19, 1972 this photo was taken at Mao Zedong's cave in Yenan. Bert Small is fourth from right, back row.