Mark Edwin Cook (b. 1936) was born in Seattle and grew up in the Seattle's Central Area. First arrested at age 17, Cook was in and out of prison for petty crimes until 1973. After his release, he became involved with the George Jackson Brigade, a small revolutionary group in Seattle that committed mostly property crimes to draw attention to conditions for prisoners and to foment leftist revolution. In 1976, Cook was arrested in association with a George Jackson Brigade bank "expropriation" and subsequent jail break, and sentenced to 30 years in prison; he was released in 2000.

Cook was politicized while in prison, where he became an advocate for prisoner rights and improvement in prison conditions. He and a few other activists called themselves the "Super Crew," and published an underground newsletter, The Bomb. Cook co-founded the Black Panther Party chapter in the Walla Walla State Penitentiary and served as its Lieutenant of Information for many years.

This photo shows Mark Cook in prison after his 1976 conviction.

Caption information source: "Mark Cook," article at University of Washington Seattle Civil Rights & Labor History Project, retrieved at http://depts.washington.edu/civilr/cook.htm
Caption information source: "Day of the Panther" by Phil Campell, " The Stranger, October 14, 1999, retrieved at https://www.thestranger.com/seattle/day-of-the-panther/Content?oid=2257