This is Akua Njeri, then Deborah Johnson.
Taken on December 4, 1969 the day of the assassination of her husband, Chairman Fred Hampton.
At 40 A.M., Akua & Fred were sleeping when a group of Chicago Police broke into their apartment, purposely killing Fred (while Akua was in bed with him as well) and his friend/security, Mark Clark.
Fred Hampton was only 21 years old.
Here is Akua’s description of what happened that morning:
“I looked up and saw bullets coming from what seemed like the front of the apartment and the kitchen area in the back. Bullets were going into the mattress. The sparks of light, the bed vibrating - I just knew with all this going on, it was all over.
At some point the shooting stopped. Fred didn’t move anymore. I came out with my hands up. There were two lines of police I had to walk though. One of them grabbed my robe and pulled it open. I was eight and a half months pregnant then. “Well, what do you know.
We have a pregnant broad.” Another policeman grabbed me by the hair and slung me into the kitchen area. I looked around and saw Ron Satchel on the dining room floor. He had blood all over him. Verlina Brewer was in the kitchen, bleeding. She started to fall.
They grabbed her and threw her against the refrigerator. Then more shooting. I heard a voice that wasn’t familiar to me say, “He’s barely alive. He’ll barely make it.” I assumed they were talking about Fred. The shooting started again, just for a brief period. It stopped. Then another unfamiliar voice said, “He’s good and dead now.”“
She gave birth to her son, Fred Hampton, Jr. 25 days later.
People still ignore this story and act like it never happened. They assassinated Fred Hampton. He started organizing with the Black Panthers when he was around 12-13.
All the changes and movement were only in a period or about 7-8 years caused by just one teenager’s sheer determination. It goes to show you what just one man can do…what you could do if you really put your mind to it.
