The Assassination of Fred Hampton How the FBI and the Chicago Police Mur...

 (Remembering Fred Hampton, the Guardian, November 29, 1989) Twenty years ago, I interviewed then-Alderman Bobby Rush and Hampton’s fiance, Akua Njeri. One of the things they recalled – which resonates strongly today – was his role deterring gang warfare. “He felt the gang element was uneducated, but they were not the enemy; they were victims,” said Njeri. “Fred believed he should sit down with them and explain how they were being used by the system to kill their own people.” “He felt the gangs could be stimulated and organized and persuaded to go in a direction that was less counterproductive,” said Rush. “He would try to talk to various gang leaders and establish a rapport. And they respected Fred. They respected his leadership ability, they respected his commitment, they respected his courage. “He could speak the language of the gang-banger, and had Fred lived he would have had a major influence on curtailing gang activity in the city of Chicago and transforming those gangs into more of a constructive political force,” Rush said. (Hampton was 21 when he was killed.) read more