Honoring the Life and Legacy of Fred Hampton: 56 Years After His Assassination

December 4, 2025 marks the 56th anniversary of the assassination of Fred Hampton, Chairman of the Illinois chapter of the Black Panther Party, revolutionary visionary, and one of the most electrifying organizers in American history. At just 21 years old, Hampton stood as a force capable of transforming Chicago’s political landscape through unity, empowerment, and radical love for the people. His life was stolen in the early morning hours of December 4, 1969, when the Chicago Police Department, working in collaboration with the FBI’s COINTELPRO program raided his apartment and executed him while he slept beside his eight-month-pregnant partner, Akua Njeri. His death was not an accident, nor a mistake; it was a state-sanctioned assassination of a young leader whose influence threatened systems of racism, poverty, and oppression.

A Revolutionary Born to Lead

Fred Hampton was born on August 30, 1948, in Maywood, Illinois. From a young age, Hampton displayed a deep sense of justice and a natural gift for leadership. As a student, he organized school walkouts, fought for equitable education, and served as president of the NAACP Youth Council, expanding its membership into the hundreds. His activism was never about personal glory, it was rooted in a profound belief that all oppressed people deserved dignity, resources, and power.

When he joined the Black Panther Party in the late 1960s, Hampton quickly rose to prominence because of his unmatched ability to organize across racial, ethnic, and class lines. While others were preaching division, Hampton was building bridges.

Building the Original Rainbow Coalition

One of Hampton’s most transformative achievements was the creation of the original Rainbow Coalition, a groundbreaking alliance that united Black, Latino, and poor white communities in Chicago. He brought together groups such as the Young Lords and the Young Patriots, proving that solidarity among the oppressed was the greatest threat to the ruling systems of inequality.

Hampton understood that poverty, police violence, and exploitation were not isolated issues. They were interconnected struggles that required collective power. His ability to unite people from vastly different backgrounds made him dangerous in the eyes of the state. COINTELPRO’s internal communications later confirmed that Hampton’s charisma, political clarity, and mass influence made him a target.

Programs That Served the People

Hampton’s leadership also expanded the Black Panther Party’s community programs, initiatives rooted in direct service and empowerment. Among them were the Free Breakfast for Children Program, Community Health Clinics, Political Education Classes, Tenant and Worker Organizing Efforts, and Anti-violence peace treaties among neighborhood groups.

The Assassination of a Rising Leader

On December 4, 1969, the state carried out a well-coordinated raid on Hampton’s apartment. Using information supplied by an FBI informant and firing nearly 100 bullets, Chicago police officers murdered Hampton and fellow Panther Mark Clark. Hampton, who had been drugged earlier that night, never had a chance to wake up.

The assassination was later exposed as part of COINTELPRO’s covert operations to eliminate Black leaders deemed “threats” to national security. It stands today as one of the clearest examples of political repression in U.S. history.

A Legacy That Lives in Every Struggle for Justice

Though his life was cut short, Fred Hampton’s influence continues to echo through generations of organizers, activists, and everyday people who fight for liberation. His words “You can kill a revolutionary, but you can’t kill the revolution” remain a timeless reminder that ideas rooted in justice cannot be destroyed.

Today, his legacy is honored through community programs, youth organizing, political education, cultural work, and ongoing demands for accountability from the systems that took his life. His son, Fred Hampton Jr., continues this legacy, ensuring that the memory and mission of Chairman Fred remain alive.

56 Years Later: We Remember, We Honor, We Continue the Struggle

Fifty-six years after his assassination, we remember Fred Hampton not just as a victim of state violence, but as a brilliant strategist, a powerful unifier, and a symbol of radical hope. His belief in the people, his fight for liberation, and his unwavering commitment to justice continue to inspire movements across the world.

As we honor his life on this anniversary, we uplift the truth: Fred Hampton was murdered because he was transforming Chicago and reshaping the possibility of collective power in America. And though they killed the man, they could not kill the movement he helped ignite.

Chairman Fred lives on through every act of resistance, every voice raised against oppression, and every community that continues the work of building a world rooted in justice, dignity, and freedom.