Joan Tarika Lewis

Joan Tarika Lewis (born February 1, 1950; née Joan Angela Lewis; pseudonym Matilaba, also known as, Tarika Lewis, Tarika Matilaba), is an American visual artist, musician, author, political activist. She was the first woman to join the Black Panther Party. Joan is the aunt of James Todd Smith (LL Cool J).

Early life Lewis was born Joan Angela Lewis on February 1, 1950, in Oakland, California, to John Henry Lewis and Florence (Reid) Lewis. Lewis grew up in Oakland during the Civil Rights Movement, when it was a hub for civil unrest due to the high prevalence of police brutality, and the continued segregation of the city due to white flight out of the “Flatlands” and into the Foothills. Lewis studied at Oakland Tech high school, following in the steps of other Black Panther Party leaders such as Bobby Hutton and Reginald Forte. Lewis drew her inspiration for these demands from student activists at Merritt College in what would become a movement of campus mobilizations across the country also demanding Black studies courses.

Lewis began visiting Merritt College with her cousins when she was 16 to attend forums on Black history and culture. The community survival projects included programs like Free Breakfast for Children, a Free Food Program, and a Child Development Center. Lewis contributed over forty images to the newspaper between 1967 and 1969 under the pen name "Matilaba". Most of the artwork that came out of the newspaper and the party itself is attributed to Emory Douglas, yet Lewis' drawings were prominently featured alongside his. Lewis worked as his assistant during her time spent in the party. Her work was easily identified by its thin pen strokes, and the light shading that outlined her usually militant female caricatures. Lewis' art usually represented common themes of the newspaper, including demonizations of the police as "pigs", as well as depictions of armed Panthers, which reinforced Black Americans struggles against police brutality. She also is the founder of the Oakland Black String Ensemble. Lewis acts as an Art Instructor/Counselor at the Healthy Babies Project, where she helps women use visual art to represent and understand trauma due to substance abuse.