Eldridge Cleaver

Leroy Eldridge Cleaver (August 31, 1935 – May 1, 1998) was an African American writer and political activist, fashion designer, convicted rapist and an early leader of the Black Panther Party serving as Minister of Information, and while in exile, Head of the International Section of the Panthers. As editor of the official Panthers' newspaper, The Black Panther, Cleaver's influence on the direction of the party was rivaled only by founders Huey P. Newton and Bobby Seale. In 1966, Cleaver was convicted of a series of crimes including burglary, assault, rape, and attempted murder, and eventually served time in Folsom and San Quentin prisons until being released on parole. In 1968, Cleaver published Soul on Ice, a collection of essays that was met with both praise and condemnation due to its searing commentary on American society and its provocative assertions. That same year, he became a fugitive after wounding two Oakland police officers in an ambush, during which Cleaver was wounded and fellow Black Panther Bobby Hutton was killed. Cleaver and Newton eventually fell out with each other, resulting in a split that weakened the party. After spending seven years in exile in Cuba, Algeria, and France, Cleaver returned to the U.S. in 1975, where he designed provocative clothes for men, and later became involved in various religious groups (Unification Church and the Collegiate Association for the Research of Principles (CARP)) before joining the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, as well as becoming a conservative Republican, appearing at Republican events.

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