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From the mid 1960’s to early 70’s, Connie Matthews was an international coordinator, journalist, activist, and advocate against the abuse of African American civil rights in America. Born as Constance Evadine Matthews in 1943, Matthews is best known for her role as International Coordinator of the Black Panther Party, as well as her writing on behalf of the Danish Committee for Solidarity with the Black Panther Party. In efforts to combat the mass-produced propaganda surrounding the true motives of the Black Panther Party, she often found herself on both the giving, and receiving end of interviews informing and advocating for ally ship abroad as the fight for civil rights continued.

Early Life
Although large portions of her life remain undocumented, Jamaica born Connie spent her upbringing in and around England. When she received a job as Huey P. Newton’s secretary she moved to New York temporarily where she happened to meet her husband to be. She was married several times, but most notably to American former Black Panther Member Michael Cetewayo Tabor. The reasons remain unclear, but her husband was known to have remarried after they relocated to Algeria. Although her husband is has 4 children, it is also unknown whether or not the two had any children of their own.

Carrier
In 1966, Bobby Seale (The Chairman of the BPP) and Huey P. Newton (the Minister of Defense and Supreme Commander of the Black Panther Party) created the guidelines for what we now know as the Black Panther Movement. As a young woman, Connie Matthews organized and helped sponsor a trip for Bobby Seale’s to travel throughout Europe to Scandinavia, Denmark, Norway, Sweden, and Finland. The purpose of this tour was to advocate against the Fascist Power that was the American Government. Not only did they advocate for peace at home, but they also advocated for peace abroad as the war in Vietnam continued. As Seale’s found himself rubbing elbows with American Politicians like Stockley Carmichael, she and Skip Malone acted as advisors, helping him navigate the European Political circle and gain traction for their cause. This connection forged by this friendship turned out to be extremely useful for the BPP. Seales had gained so much traction during his European tour, when people got word of the unjust imprisonment of Huey Newton they began to mobilize. People from several countries including Norway, Sweden, and Finland joined in solidarity with BPP and demanded the political prisoners released.

Rooted in Internationalist ideologies, she wrotes as a member of the Solidarity Committee for the Third World People. She used her journalistic abilities in an attempt to convince readers and listeners that America’s abuse of power was everyone’s problem. Her letter to the Danish Foreign Minister was a call to action for allies who stood with the cause. It explained the intricacies of institutional racism and some of the methods the government used to keep people oppressed. In this letter she requested financial support to combat the unjust incarcerations and costly consequences of their line of work. By appealing in such moral and digestible ways, she continued to forge support for oppressed Americans between the BPP and Danish Solidarity committees. ·

Legacy
In February of 1971, Connie coordinated a tour for the Minister of Defense and Supreme Commander of the Black Panther Party, Huey P. Newton. The goals of this tour were to rally support for the Revolutionary Intercommunal Solidarity Day in Europe, as well as bring national attention to the trial of the Chairman of the BPP, Bobby Seals, and Erika Gibbins. With the threat of capital punishment looming, Connie mobilized her resources and helped plan a course of action for Newton. Simultaneously, Michael Tabor, along with 13 Black Panther Party members were taken to trial under suspicion of having coordinated an explosive attack on New York City, New York. Sometime in the length of these drawn out trials, on the night of February 5th, much to the dismay of The Black Panthers, Connie Matthews, her husband, and a man named Eddie Jamal Joseph, absconded to Algeria. It is also alleged that when she escaped, she escaped with irreplaceable evidence (such as witnesses and testimonies,) key information, and the licensing for the Revolutionary Intercommunal Solidarity Day. To make matters worse, a covert officer embedded in the Black Panther Organization confirmed this version of the story in court. Six days later, ‘The Black Panther’ Newspaper published an article with a statement explaining the events that had occurred involving the fugitives, the backlash of their choices, and revealing their decision to exile them from the Black Panther Party and organization.