This past weekend Judas and the Black Messiah was released in theaters and HBO/Max. I was more than excited to watch the portrayal of Fred Hampton, Chairman of the Illinois Black Panther Party. I remember the picture of Fred Hampton my father had prominently displayed in his home office as a little boy.
I knew who Frederick Douglass and WEB DuBois were but I didn't know the brother with the bucket hat, finger pointing at me, accusing me of not doing enough to be ready. My father always told me that being pro-black doesn't mean you hate white people, it means you are dedicated to the upliftment of the culture and race. Now that I'm a father and husband I knew it was my duty to educate my family about who and what Fred Hampton was. My wife; born and raised in Chicago, said she had no idea about Fred Hampton, my daughter was equally perplexed. Schools don't teach or tell the stories of men and women like Fred Hampton. Black history is rich and has many layers, some beautiful and some extremely ugly. But its our history, not just for black folks, but all folks. Everyone should know the story of the young brother from the west side of Chicago, a man who tried to unite all the poor people. Later that night; as my wife and I usually do, we discussed what we thought about the movie. She was blown away at the lengths the FBI traveled to bring down Fred Hampton and how William O'Neil (FBI Informant) was instrumental in the downfall. I explained to my wife that J. Edgar Hoover one of the biggest enemies of the civil rights movement and director of the FBI, created a program called COINTELPRO (1).
Hoover appointed himself the vanguard of the white establishment and used every tool in his toolbox to subvert any black man or woman that stood tall against the systemic racism that plagued America. Hoover has been dead for many years but his lasting legacy permeates law enforcement throughout America. When white politicians scoff at systemic racism, its in their DNA from many years of oppressive behavior to have the audacity to think racism doesn't exist. Which brings me back to Fred Hampton and why I thought it was important to make our Valentine's date night a family affair and learn something new. The year 2020 was an awakening for white America, but for black and brown folk, it was business as usual. Police brutality's ugly face, low wages and inadequate healthcare are par for the course. Unfortunately we don't have leaders that are for all people regardless of color, sexual orientation or ethnicity. 2020 could have used a Fred Hampton, a revolutionary.
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