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N0KFQ > TODAY 04.12.14 17:00l 78 Lines 3797 Bytes #999 (0) @ WW
BID : 41515_N0KFQ
Read: GUEST
Subj: Today in History - Dec 4
Path: IZ3LSV<IW8PGT<I3XTY<I0OJJ<N6RME<N0KFQ
Sent: 141204/1600Z 41515@N0KFQ.#SWMO.MO.USA.NA BPQK1.4.62
Dec 4, 1969:
Police kill two members of the Black Panther Party
Black Panthers Fred Hampton, 21, and Mark Clark, 22, are gunned
down by 14 police officers as they lie sleeping in their Chicago,
Illinois, apartment. About a hundred bullets had been fired in
what police described as a fierce gun battle with members of the
Black Panther Party. However, ballistics experts later determined
that only one of those bullets came from the Panthers' side. In
addition, the "bullet holes" in the front door of the apartment,
which police pointed to as evidence that the Panthers had been
shooting from within the apartment, were actually nail holes
created by police in an attempt to cover up the attack. Four
other Black Panthers were wounded in the raid, as well as two
police officers.
The raid, which had been led by Cook County State's Attorney
Edward Hanrahan, was only one of many attempts by the government
to weaken the Black Power movement. Under the leadership of J.
Edgar Hoover, the FBI had been battling civil rights activists
and other minority leaders for years with their Cointelpro
program, whose purpose, according to one FBI document, was to
"expose, disrupt, misdirect, discredit or otherwise neutralize
the activities of black nationalist hate type organizations and
groupings, their leadership, spokesmen, membership and
supporters." Although the FBI was not responsible for leading
this particular raid, a federal grand jury indicated that the
bureau played a significant role in the events leading up to the
raid; Hanrahan had utilized information provided by FBI informant
William O'Neal, who was third in command of the Chicago Panthers,
to plan his attack.
There was also a conscious effort by the FBI to use "aggressive
and imaginary tactics" to prevent the "rise of a 'messiah' who
could unify and electrify the militant black nationalist
movement." They apparently considered Fred Hampton, an outspoken,
charismatic activist who was chairman of the Illinois Black
Panther Party, to be such a potential leader. Hampton became
involved in the civil rights struggle at a very early age: At 15,
he organized a chapter of the NAACP at his high school, and he
became chairman of the Illinois Black Panther Party when he was
20. Many other leaders of the Panthers, such as Huey Newton,
Assata Shakur, and Bobby Seale, spent time in jail on charges
based on little or no evidence.
Although most media coverage of the Black Panthers focused on
their violent rhetoric and the fact that they carried arms, the
Panthers were involved in many nonviolent community-organizing
activities. They provided food and medical care to the needy,
preached political empowerment, crusaded against police
brutality, and started a school. As Fred Hampton himself said
shortly before his death, "There have been many attacks made upon
the Black Panther Party, so we feel it's best to be an armed
propaganda unit. But the basic thing is to educate."
Unfortunately for Hampton and the other Panthers targeted by the
FBI, being armed did not help to protect against governmental
repression. In fact, it may have even made matters worse by
aiding the FBI in legitimizing their aggressive tactics.
Despite the evidence provided by ballistics experts showing that
police had fired 99 percent of the bullets and had falsified the
report on the incident, the first federal grand jury did not
indict anyone involved in the raid. Furthermore, even though a
subsequent grand jury did indict all the police officers
involved, the charges were dismissed.
Survivors of the attack and relatives of Hampton and Clark filed
a lawsuit against Hampton and other officials, which was finally
settled in 1983.
73, K.O. n0kfq
N0KFQ @ N0KFQ.#SWMO.MO.USA.NA
E-mail: kohiggs@gmail.com
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