In the early chapters of the book, Brown recalls growing up on York Street in a rough neighborhood of North Philadelphia.
Due to her mother's persistence, she is able to attend an experimental elementary school in a nice neighborhood and becomes friends with some Jewish girls.
Her daughter, Ericka Abrams, recounts a memory of when Brown pulled a rifle on heavily armed members of the Black Panther Party.
There is a large amount of writing on friend, lover, and fellow Panther Huey P. Newton, including information on his theory of "revolutionary inter-communalism," in which he foresaw the weakening of the nation-state under the power of the market economy.
Huey P. Newton is the one who appointed Elaine Brown as Black Panther Party Chairman when he fled to Cuba.