Uptown Notes

A year ago, I did a tribute post to the late Fred Hampton on Uptownnotes.com and one year later I sit in front of the computer reflecting on the 40th anniversary of the assassination of Fred Hampton. For me, Hampton represents an idyllic portrait of young organizing, fire, and revolutionary praxis. His life, cut down at the age of 21, reminds us of the power of youth in struggle, but also must bring sobering reality. We’ve got to garner young energy for fighting against oppression and building a different social world but we must also be honest about the stakes of engaging full-on in this struggle. There is little glamorous about authentic revolutionary struggle. There are no pensions, benefits, or cameras for people working from the grassroots to transform communities and the world. In fact, their lives are ones that tend to go uncelebrated and are at best acknowledged in memorial. As I reflect on Chairman Fred Hampton’s life and his work with the Black Panther Party I am glad to continue to grow in understanding of him and struggle. Because that is what he would have wanted…

“If you ever think about me and you ain’t gonna do no revolutionary act, forget about me. I don’t want myself on your mind if you’re not going to work for the people. If you’re asked to make a commitment at the age of twenty, and you say I don’t want to make a commitment at the age of twenty, only because of the reason that I’m too young to die, I want to live a little longer, then you’re dead already. You have to understand that people have to pay a price for peace. If you dare to struggle, you dare to win. If you dare not struggle then damn it, you don’t deserve to win. Let me say peace to you if you’re willing to fight for it.”

-Fred Hampton