Black History Makers: Fred Hampton

Black Panther leader Fred Hampton, Dirksen Federal Building, 1969. (Photo by Paul Sequeira|Fair Use)

Fred Hampton (born Frederick Allen Hampton) was an American civil rights leader, deputy chairman of the Black Panther Party Illinois chapter, and founder of the City of Chicago’s first Rainbow Coalition.

Hampton was born on August 30,1948 in Chicago, Illinois. He was one of three children born to Francis and Iberia Hampton. He was raised in the suburbs of Chicago, and during his youth his mother Iberia babysat Emmett Till. It was this tragic murder and Hampton’s own experiences that opened his eyes to racial injustice.

At an early age Hampton began doing things about it. While in high school he organized a student section of The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), served on his school’s Interracial Cross Section Committee, and called for more Black teachers to be added to the school’s staff. An honor student upon graduation, he pursued a pre-law program at Triton College . However, he did not complete it .

Hampton remained an active member of the NAACP, attending rallies and supporting their causes. At times he experienced violent interactions at the hands of the police at what should have been peaceful demonstrations, and decided to part ways with the NAACP. 

Upon seeing Hampton speak, Black Panther Bobby Rush found him to be a charismatic speaker, and invited Hampton to join their chapter as one of the original members. The Black Panther Party had only been founded two years earlier by Huey P. Newton and Bobby Seale. Hampton’s beliefs were more aligned with the Panthers than those of the NAACP, as outlined in the Ten Point Program.

The Ten Point Program was a document outlining the group’s political goals. Some of which of which are still concerns for African Americans today. Point number seven, for example, stated, “We Want An Immediate End to Police Brutality and the Murder of Black People.” The Panthers’ intentions were to improve the lives of African Americans calling for better housing, jobs, and education. The Party was different in that they believed in violence, and would use it to punctuate their message when necessary.

Almost as soon as their chapter began, the Panthers were monitored by the FBI. According to the FBI director at the time, J. Edgar Hoover, the Black Panthers were “the greatest threat to the internal security of the country.” Special interest and focus was given to Hampton because Hoover considered him to be a possible suspect for what he considered to be an emerging “messiah,” a leader who could “unify, and electrify, the militant black nationalist movement.” 

In order to infiltrate the Illinois chapter of the Black Panther Party authorities negotiated with a teen who had stolen and crashed a car under the influence of alcohol, telling him that they would drop all charges if he would become an informant for them. His name was William O’Neal. O’Neal may have been a teenager but he was incredibly effective, providing the FBI with floor plans, movements, and information on weaponry.

Unaware of the infiltration, Hampton continued his activism, forming the City of Chicago’s first “Rainbow Coalition.” The Rainbow Coalition was an alliance of groups that otherwise would have had almost no positive contact, and included other minority focused associations and street gangs. The coalition used their combined resources to provide aid to low-income citizens.

Throughout Hampton’s term as deputy chairman, the Chicago Police Department and Black Panthers were often in conflict. The violence resulted in casualties on both sides. Using a floor plan provided by O’Neal, a 14-man team of police officers raided Hampton’s apartment on the West Side of Chicago. The police emerged with a stockpile of illegal firearms that were never properly registered. Of the nearly 100 shots fired during the raid all but one belonged to the police. Once the raid was over, Hampton and fellow Panther Mark Clark were dead. 

Hampton’s pregnant girlfriend Akua Njeri would later recount that she tried everything she could to wake Hampton at the start of the raid, but he was dead weight, as if he had been drugged. An independent autopsy would later reveal a dangerous amount of sedatives in Hampton’s bloodstream. Njeri further claimed she heard one police officer tell another that Hampton was “barely alive,” followed by two shots and a second officer saying, “He’s good and dead now.” 

No one was ever convicted for Hampton and Clark’s murders. Fred Hampton was just 21-years-old at the time of his murder on December 4, 1969.

A native of Phoenix, Arizona Aundrea Sayrie is a firm believer in the power of words, faith and a strong spirit. Her greatest desire is to encourage those around her to discover and honor their truth, and to passionately live on purpose.