Episode 36 dives into the topic of the public school breakfast program. Before the federal government ever fed millions of children breakfast at school, Fred Hampton and the Black Panther Party were already doing it — for free.And for that, they were demonized, surveilled, raided, sabotaged, and ultimately destroyed.In this episode of Arms and Arguments, host Nick Lewis breaks down one of the most uncomfortable truths in modern American history:👉 The U.S. government labeled the Black Panther Party’s Free Breakfast for Children Program a national security threat👉 The FBI’s COINTELPRO targeted it as “the most dangerous activity” of the Panthers👉 Police raided kitchens, lied to parents, destroyed food, and terrorized children👉 Fred Hampton was assassinated at 21 years old👉 And then the government quietly adopted the same idea — and took credit for itThis is not opinion.This is documented history.We examine:• How feeding hungry kids became “subversive”• Why J. Edgar Hoover feared community programs more than guns• Direct quotes from Fred Hampton and FBI memos• The role of COINTELPRO in destroying Black-led community initiatives• How school breakfast programs exploded nationwide after the Panthers were eliminated• Why the origin of government food programs is almost never taughtWhat was once called communist propaganda is now standard public policy.The question is not whether the Panthers were perfect.The question is why helping poor children was treated as an act of war.And why the same government that crushed the program now celebrates it — without ever acknowledging where it came from.This episode isn’t about left vs right.It’s about power, fear, and who is allowed to help the poor in America.SOURCES & REFERENCES• FBI COINTELPRO Documents• U.S. Senate Church Committee Report (1976)• Fred Hampton speeches and interviews• National School Breakfast Program history• Archival photos and public-domain materials