Fred Hampton, deputy chairman of the Illinois chapter of the Black Panther Party, was born on August 30, 1948 and raised in the Chicago suburb of Maywood, Illinois. In high school he excelled in academics and athletics. After Hampton graduated from high school, he enrolled in a pre-law program at Triton Junior College in River Grove, Illinois. Hampton also became involved in the civil rights movement, joining his local branch of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). His dynamic leadership and organizational skills in the branch enabled him to rise to the position of Youth Council President. Hampton mobilized a racially integrated group of five hundred young people who successfully lobbied city officials to create better academic services and recreational facilities for African American children.

In 1968, Hampton joined the Black Panther Party (BPP), headquartered in Oakland, California. Using his NAACP experience, he soon headed the Chicago chapter. During his brief BPP tenure, Hampton formed a “Rainbow Coalition” which included Students for a Democratic Society, the Blackstone Rangers, a street gang and the National Young Lords, a Puerto Rican organization. Hampton was also successful in negotiating a gang truce on local television.

In an effort to neutralize the Chicago BPP, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Chicago Police Department placed the chapter under heavy surveillance and conducted several harassment campaigns. In 1969, several BPP members and police officers were either injured or killed in shootouts, and over one hundred local members of the BPP were arrested.

During an early morning police raid of the BPP headquarters at 2337 W. Monroe Street on December 4, 1969, twelve officers opened fire, killing the 21-year-old Hampton and Peoria, Illinois Panther leader Mark Clark. Police also seriously wounded four other Panther members. Many in the Chicago African American community were outraged over the raid and what they saw as the unnecessary deaths of Hampton and Clark. Over 5,000 people attended Hampton’s funeral where Reverends Ralph Abernathy and Jesse Jackson of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference eulogized the slain activist. Years later, law enforcement officials admitted wrongdoing in the killing of Hampton and Clark. In 1990, and later in 2004, the Chicago City Council passed resolutions commemorating December 4 as Fred Hampton Day.

Megathreads and spaces to hang out:

reminders:

  • 💚 You nerds can join specific comms to see posts about all sorts of topics
  • 💙 Hexbear’s algorithm prioritizes comments over upbears
  • 💜 Sorting by new you nerd
  • 🌈 If you ever want to make your own megathread, you can reserve a spot here nerd
  • 🐶 Join the unofficial Hexbear-adjacent Mastodon instance toots.matapacos.dog

Links To Resources (Aid and Theory):

Aid:

Theory:

  • SoylentSnake [he/him, they/them]
    ·
    4 months ago

    I took the "stone heart pill" early on in my dating life and had to take boosters a couple times. It isn't a permanent thing.

    idt i have this in me dog, i feel like you and i are very different (or at least, you were able to will yourself toward being v different in a way that would be more of a struggle for me). FWIW i have had things that were like "yeah that was fun or fun-ish while it lasted, but very much time to move on," i just don't really post about them on here cuz they were kinda nothingburgers. which i guess is a little stone heart-adjacent. it just sux when the ones that feel like really deep meaningful connects don't pan out. nothing lasts forever or truly "pans out" i suppose because most relationships fail, and for the ones that don't we're all mortal. but i guess when the meaningful ones end before they feel like they've run their "natural course" is when it hurts. but ah well, u feel your feelings and press on.

    also when i've posted about types i've generally meant more along the lines of personality types. i'm most drawn to people like me: sensitive, introspective, creatives and/or intellectuals. it's not really a rule that i've set for myself, moreso that i've noticed pretty much everyone i've ever truly fell in love with has fit this type, and i think it makes sense that i'm drawn to that and there's no reason to run from it. i guess i do sorta have physical/more superficial presentation style "types" as well but i don't wanna post about that in too much detail because, idk, at a glance it could look a little fetishy or objectifying? and i don't want any femme comrades to feel uncomfortable. plus the physical type dimension is also way less important than the Nature of My Potential Partners' Souls aspect.