Seattle Black Panther Party mural outside of Franklin High School.

The restored Seattle Black Panther Party mural back on display outside Franklin High School on Aug. 17, 2026, alongside a new mural featuring a quote from Black Panther Party member Ericka Huggins.(Photo: Susan Fried)

Vandalized Black Panther Mural at Franklin High School Gets a Glow-Up

Published on:

Aug 27, 2026, 2:00 pm

3 min read

This month, a small group of volunteers reinstalled a mural honoring the 50th anniversary of the Seattle Chapter of the Black Panther Party. The mural was originally created by the Franklin High School Art of Resistance & Resilience club and was officially hung on the fence outside Franklin High School in November 2018.

The mural was removed for repair and refurbishing in October 2025 after several panels were vandalized. Lauren Holloway, founder and co-advisor for Art of Resistance & Resilience, organized current and former Franklin students, community members, and staff from nonprofits to help repair the mural. They also added another mural on the wall below the fence.

Repairing the Mural

Lauren Holloway restores the Seattle Black Panther Party mural at the Lander Project, surrounded by painted portraits and community scenes.

Lauren Holloway, founder and co-advisor for Art of Resistance & Resilience, works on restoring the Seattle Black Panther Party mural at the Lander Project on July 30, 2026.(Photo: Susan Fried)

Satrn repairs damage to a mural portrait of Seattle Black Panther Mike Tagawa.

Assistant teaching artist Satrn repairs damage to the portrait of Seattle Black Panther Mike Tagawa on July 17, 2026.(Photo: Susan Fried)

Yasmin Abdinur repairs a Seattle Black Panther Party mural panel at the Lander Project.

Franklin High School student Yasmin Abdinur works on repairing damage to one of Seattle Black Panther Party mural panels at the Lander Project on July 30, 2026.(Photo: Susan Fried)

Teaching artists Nathan "Sire One" Hivick and Jarman Hauser supported the student artists. Hivick also provided the students with a space to work and learn the art of graffiti at the Lander Project. The Art of Resistance & Resilience received a small grant from the Seattle Office of Arts & Culture, and the club sold posters of the original mural at Estelitas Library, Arte Noir, Seattle Black Panther Party Park, and the Seattle Black Panther Party Interpretive Center to generate more funds. Seattle Public Schools provided painting supplies, and volunteers from Artstation Mt. Baker also pitched in.

Franklin High School alumnus Willie McIntyre paints a vandalized Seattle Black Panther Party mural panel during restoration work.

Willie McIntyre, an alumnus of the Franklin High School Art of Resistance & Resilience club, applies paint to one of the vandalized Seattle Black Panther Party mural panels on July 30, 2026.(Photo: Susan Fried)

Seattle Black Panther Party co-founder Aaron Dixon checks restoration progress on the damaged mural at the Lander Project.

Aaron Dixon, a co-founder and captain of the Seattle Chapter of the Black Panther Party, checks on the progress of repairs to the damaged mural at the Lander Project on July 30, 2026.(Photo: Susan Fried)

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Adding Something New

Holloway said that during the height of the pandemic, she thought it would be nice to put another mural below the existing one. Since that new space was short and long, it seemed the perfect canvas for a quote.

She invited the community to offer suggestions, and after receiving almost 70, they chose a quote by Black Panther Party member Ericka Huggins: "We can together change the world. We are all threaded together like a huge tapestry of humanity and we forget we are interconnected."

Teaching artist Jarman Hauser spray-paints a new mural outside Franklin High School.

Teaching artist Jarman Hauser spray-paints the new mural outside Franklin High School on July 21, 2026. The mural features a quote by Black Panther Party member Ericka Huggins.(Photo: Susan Fried)

A student reaches into a bin filled with cans of spray paint.

A student reaches into a bin of spray paint while working on the new mural outside Franklin High School on July 17, 2026.(Photo: Susan Fried)

Jarman Hauser and Oliver Condit work on the new mural outside Franklin High School.

Hauser works with Franklin High School junior Oliver Condit on the new mural outside the school on July 21, 2026.(Photo: Susan Fried)

Holloway said, "The message here is we got to come together and recognize and remember that we're all part of this human family, and that's the only way change is going to happen. So everybody brought their identities, their life experiences, their stories to this mural. … It's a tapestry of what's going on in their hearts and minds."

Back at Franklin

The repaired mural is now on display.

Volunteers finish installing two murals outside Franklin High School.

Volunteers finish reinstalling the refurbished Seattle Black Panther Party mural and the new mural featuring a quote by Black Panther Party member Ericka Huggins outside Franklin High School on Aug. 17, 2026.(Photo: Susan Fried)

A King County Metro bus window reflects the refurbished Seattle Black Panther Party mural.

The refurbished Seattle Black Panther Party mural is reflected in a King County Metro bus window outside Franklin High School on Rainier Avenue South on Aug. 17, 2026.(Photo: Susan Fried)

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