Happy birthday to legendary Black Panther and revolutionary Marxist-Leninist Fred Hampton! Born in Chicago in 1948, Hampton became deputy chairman of the Black Panther Party and chair of the Illinois chapter.
He was one of the most prominent anti-racists of his era, fighting against white supremacy through multicultural organizing. Hampton helped found the Young Patriots, which organized poor whites, and the Young Lords, which involved organizing Puerto Ricans. He also helped build alliances between Chicago street gangs in order to help them end infighting and work toward social change.
Hampton saw fascism as the greatest threat to humanity, arguing that “nothing is more important than stopping fascism, because fascism will stop us all.” He was identified as a threat by the FBI in 1967 who placed spies inside the Black Panthers in order to undermine his influence. In December 1969 he was brutally murdered by police who drugged him and then shot him in his bed during a pre-dawn raid. Police fired 100 gunshots into his apartment.
Watch Fred Hampton explain how those in power in capitalist societies use racism to maintain their rule by dividing the working class and oppressed people. At a time of massive inequality and the increasing rise of far-right racism, his message is still incredibly important.
Top 10 cringe things for me at this point in my life includes someone with a bible verse listed in their media bio. Like how embarrassing (including embarrassment for my past self lmao)
A milestone in both my journey through adulthood and through grief; finally made my own CVS rewards account after using my dead moms account for the last 10 years. Go me! Here’s to more coupons 😂