Schalk notes that her own analysis of the Black Panther Party runs counter to the dominant cultural narrative of the Black Panther party as an violent, sexist, gang-like organization. Schalk notes her own work seeks to move away from the predominant focus on the most recognized men in the organization and instead focus on the work of women and rank-and-file members before 1972.

This reassessment has become academically more popular after a 2017 FBI leak which included a document that labeled the Black Lives Matter movement as Black identity extremists - a label similar to the label of "greatest internal threat to the United States" given to the Black Panthers in 1969.