Fred Hampton Jr.

Fred Hampton Jr. is an American political activist who is the only child of Black Panther Party leader Fred Hampton. He is the president and chairman of the Prisoners of Conscience Committee and the Black Panther Party Cubs.

Hampton is the son of Black Panther Party leader Fred Hampton and his fiancée, Deborah Johnson (now known as Akua Njeri). Johnson was over eight months pregnant when Hampton Sr. was killed by the Chicago police in a 1969 raid, which occurred 25 days before he was born. He was given the name Alfred Johnson at birth. His mother had it legally changed to "Fred Hampton Jr." when he was ten years old.

Hampton graduated from Tilden High School and sporadically studied journalism at Olive–Harvey College. He worked part-time as an auto mechanic while speaking at rallies organized by the National People's Democratic Uhuru Movement (NPDUM) during the late 1980s.

In 1993, he was taken behind the bars after firebombing a Korean grocery store. The controversy sparked in the aftermath of the 1992 nationwide protests after the acquittal of the Los Angeles Police Department officers who beat Rodney King. Even though Hampton claimed he was home all day, authorities reported that he was seen throwing Molotov cocktails into Korean businesses, Lee's Men's Fashions and MJM Jewelry.

That year, he was sentenced to 18 years in prison for the “act of terrorism” getting parole only on September 14, 2001. Defending him, mother Akua called it a “bogus charge” and said, “Where was the fire? Who was injured? Nobody. And even if he did it, 18 years? 18 years? We maintain Fred didn't do it.”

Now, he serves as the president and chairman of the Prisoners of Conscience Committee and the Black Panther Party Cubs (POCC/BPPC). A spoken word artist and poet, he organizes events highlighting race relations and law enforcement. Working behind and beyond prison walls, Hampton Jr works to organize the black community, and expose brutal prison conditions.

Hampton Jr was associated with his father's biopic, "Judas and the Black Messiah," as a consultant for years. Director Shaka King met him several times before production and even visited his childhood home in Maywood. In fact, their intense conversation about the script and story once lasted between 10 and 12 hours.

“He is his father’s son,” King said in an interview with Chicago Suntimes. “Fred Jr’s time on set with us was incredibly useful. We re-did scenes, and he pointed out minor details. We’re doing a movie about these people’s lives; we had to get it right.” The film released on February 12, 2021.