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Stockely Carmichael, a civil rights activist was the first to adopt and popularize the phrase "black power." The phrase was used as a rallying cry by Blacks who were fighting for social justice and equality.

Carmichael was originally from the British West Indies but later moved to Harlem, NY. He attended Bronx High School of Science and later continued his education at Howard University in Washington D.C. It was in D.C. that he became interested in the Civil Rights Movement. Carmichael also worked for SNCC, Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee. As a member of SNCC he focused on issues such as voter registration in the South among other things. Two years after joining SNCC he became chairman. in 1967, Stokely Carmichael left SNCC, joined forces with the Black Panther Party and moved to West Africa. While in Africa he requested to go by the name of Kwame Toure'.