Fred Hampton

Who Was Fred Hampton?

Fred Hampton was a prominent leader of the Black Panther Party who played a critical role in advocating for racial justice and community empowerment. Joining the Black Panther Party in 1968, Hampton quickly rose to national prominence, particularly in Chicago, where his leadership and organizational skills were widely recognized. However, his growing influence made him a target of law enforcement. In the early hours of December 4, 1969, a police raid on Hampton’s apartment resulted in his death at the age of 21. Investigations later revealed that police fired nearly 100 shots during the raid, with only one bullet coming from inside the apartment. Prior to his death, Hampton had been under intense surveillance by the FBI, who had monitored his activities closely.

Early Life and Education

Frederick Allen Hampton was born on August 30, 1948, to Francis and Iberia Hampton. Although various sources differ on his birthplace, it is commonly listed as Chicago or one of its suburbs, including Summit, Maywood, or Blue Island, Illinois. Some accounts, however, state that Hampton was born in Shreveport, Louisiana. He grew up with an older brother and sister, and the Hampton family had a close relationship with the family of Emmett Till before Till’s tragic murder in 1955. When Hampton was 10, his family moved to Maywood, a suburb of Chicago.

Hampton attended Irving Elementary School and later, Proviso East High School, where he became involved in activism. As a high school student, he led the school’s Interracial Committee and protested the school’s practice of nominating only white girls for homecoming queen, a campaign that ultimately resulted in the inclusion of Black girls in the nomination process.

After graduating with honors from Proviso East, Hampton studied pre-law at Triton Junior College and later attended Crane Junior College (which later became Malcolm X College) and the University of Illinois at Chicago Circle.

Hampton’s leadership abilities were evident early on, as he led the West Suburban chapter of the NAACP’s Youth Council, expanding its membership to over 500. He also advocated for a community pool in Maywood, leading to an arrest in 1967 for “mob action” after a demonstration on the issue.

Involvement in the Black Panther Party

In November 1968, Fred Hampton helped establish the Illinois chapter of the Black Panther Party. At just 20 years old, he became the chairman of the chapter, quickly earning respect for his leadership, public speaking, and community organizing skills. Hampton was instrumental in creating programs that benefited the local community, such as free breakfast programs and health clinics.

Hampton also worked to build alliances between different community groups. Notably, he helped form the “Rainbow Coalition,” a coalition of the Black Panther Party, the Puerto Rican Young Lords, and the white Young Patriots, a group made up of families from Appalachia. This broad coalition represented Hampton’s vision for a united, multiracial struggle for social justice.

However, Hampton’s activism and leadership attracted the attention of both local law enforcement and the federal government. FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover considered the Black Panther Party to be “the greatest threat to the internal security of the country,” and he feared the emergence of a leader who could galvanize the militant nationalist movement. As part of its Counter Intelligence Program (COINTELPRO), the FBI aimed to undermine and discredit Black organizations and their leaders. Hampton was placed on the FBI’s Agitator Index just weeks before his death.

In addition to FBI surveillance, Hampton faced increasing pressure from local law enforcement. In January 1969, while appearing on television, Hampton was arrested by Chicago police on an old traffic warrant. Later that year, he was put on trial for stealing ice cream bars in Maywood—a charge he denied—and was convicted, resulting in a two-to-five-year prison sentence.

Tensions escalated between the Black Panther Party and police, particularly after a shootout in November 1969 left two police officers and a Panther dead. Though Hampton was out of town at the time of the shootout, authorities linked him to the violence due to his leadership position within the Party. Despite these mounting pressures, Hampton’s prominence continued to rise, and he was appointed national spokesman for the Black Panther Party shortly before his death.

Fred Hampton’s legacy endures as a symbol of resistance, community leadership, and the struggle for racial equality, and his life remains a powerful reminder of the risks faced by those who challenge systemic injustice.

Death and Aftermath

On December 4, 1969, Fred Hampton was at his apartment on Chicago’s West Side, accompanied by other members of the Black Panther Party, including his pregnant fiancée, Akua Njeri. At approximately 4:45 a.m., a dozen police officers executed a search warrant in pursuit of illegal weapons. Almost immediately upon forcing entry into the apartment, Mark Clark, a fellow Panther, was fatally shot by a bullet to the heart.

Prior to the raid, a floor plan of Hampton’s apartment, provided by William O’Neal—an FBI informant who had infiltrated the Panthers—was given to the authorities. It was later revealed that O’Neal had also allegedly drugged Hampton with a sleep-inducing barbiturate that night. When the officers entered Hampton’s bedroom, they fired at the bed, wounding Hampton but narrowly missing his fiancée, Njeri. After removing Njeri from the room, the police reportedly told her that Hampton was “barely alive.” She then heard two more shots followed by the statement, “He’s good and dead now.”

Although no illegal weapons were discovered, seven surviving Panthers—four of whom were injured—were arrested on charges of aggravated assault and attempted murder. The scene was left unsecured, and the Black Panther Party offered tours of the apartment in the aftermath. Law enforcement’s claim that they had responded to gunfire was debunked when it was revealed that the holes in the apartment’s walls, which police had attributed to Panther gunfire, were actually nail heads.

In 1970, charges against the surviving Panthers were dropped, and a federal grand jury investigation revealed that the police had fired 82 to 99 shots, with only one coming from the apartment. Cook County State’s Attorney Edward Hanrahan, who had overseen the raid, was indicted for obstruction of justice in 1971, along with 12 officers and an assistant. However, no convictions followed. Hanrahan was subsequently voted out of office in 1972, a shift in Chicago’s political landscape that paved the way for the election of Harold Washington, Chicago’s first Black mayor, in 1983. That same year, a settlement was reached in which the city of Chicago, Cook County, and the federal government agreed to pay $1.85 million to the survivors and to the families of Hampton and Clark, acknowledging that the government had conspired against the Black Panther Party and violated the plaintiffs’ civil rights.

Hampton’s funeral, held on December 9, 1969, at First Baptist Church of Melrose Park, was attended by over 5,000 people. One of the eulogies was delivered by the Reverend Jesse Jackson.

Legacy and Media Representation

Fred Hampton’s story has been the subject of multiple film and documentary productions. In 1971, the documentary The Murder of Fred Hampton was released, and in 2021, Shaka King directed Judas and the Black Messiah, in which Daniel Kaluuya portrayed Hampton. Additionally, Hampton was portrayed by Kelvin Harrison Jr. in the 2020 film The Trial of the Chicago 7.

In 1970, the Maywood community pool, which Hampton had advocated for, was renamed in his honor. The Chicago City Council also passed resolutions in 1990 and 2004, declaring December 4 to be Fred Hampton Day.

Personal Life

Fred Hampton’s son, Fred Hampton Jr., was born just weeks after his father’s tragic death.