She led the Black Panthers. Now she’s a property developer – for Oakland’s poorest

The activist Elaine Brown, former chair of the party, is leading an $80m affordable housing project in West Oakland

In the early hours of 28 October 1967, the co-founder of the Black Panther Party, Huey Newton, was pulled over by police as he was driving along Seventh Street in West Oakland, California. A scuffle ensued and shots rang out, puncturing Newton's abdomen, killing a police officer, John Frey, and wounding another.

All bullets found at the scene were police-issued, yet Newton was arrested as he was being treated for gunshot wounds in hospital, and sent to jail. His prosecution and 1968 trial sparked the Free Huey" protests that spread across the country, transforming the Panthers into a nationwide Black power organization demanding an end to police brutality, equality in housing and employment, and an economic revolution.