December 4, 1969. Chicago Police Gun Battle Against 2 Black Panthers

[marindem01]

Given the current political climate and Police Violence Against African-Americans, I thought we should take time to remember what Chicago Police had called a "Gun Battle". A "Gun Battle" in CPD fired over 100-Rounds, the the Black Panthers fired one round each. Charges against the cops were dismissed. CPD had led in their reports. Nothing new there.

https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct- ... story.html.

Both Fred Hampton and Mark Clark were killed, between the two of them only one round was fired. One hellvua "Gun Battle". One Hundred Rounds as opposed to one, that was a helluva "Gun Battle".

[carmenjonze]

Chicago Police Assassinate Black Panther Party Leaders Fred Hampton and Mark Clark in Pre-Dawn Raid - Equal Justice Initiative

Around 4:30 am on December 4, 1969, plainclothes officers from the Chicago Police Department armed with shotguns and machine guns kicked down the door of the Chicago apartment where several Black Panther Party members were staying and opened fire on them. Though the Party members were asleep at the time and posed no threat, the officers fired over 90 bullets into the apartment, killing Fred Hampton, 21, and Mark Clark, 22—two leaders of the Black Panther Party—and critically wounding four other Party members. Mr. Hampton had been asleep next to his fiancé, who was eight-months-pregnant when he was killed.

Following Mr. Hampton and Mr. Clark’s assassinations on December 4, seven Panthers at the apartment that night, who had allegedly wounded two officers, were charged with attempted murder. In a statement released after the shooting, Edward Hanrahan, the Cook County state’s attorney who had ordered the violent raid, said: “The immediate, violent, criminal reaction of the occupants in shooting at announced police officers emphasizes the extreme viciousness of the Black Panther Party.”

Huey P. Newton and Bobby Seale formed the Black Panther Party for Self Defense in Oakland, California, in 1966. Spurning civil rights tactics of marches, sit-ins, and boycotts, the Black Panther Party was inspired by the self-determination philosophy of Malcolm X and the “Black Power” speeches of Kwame Ture (born Stokely Carmichael). The Party founded youth centers and free breakfast programs, organized legally-armed patrols to guard against police brutality in Black neighborhoods, and became popular among Black urban youth as chapters spread throughout the country. In the 1968-69 school year, the Black Panther Party fed as many as 20,000 children.

[marindem01]

Chicago Police Assassinate Black Panther Party Leaders Fred Hampton and Mark Clark in Pre-Dawn Raid - Equal Justice Initiative

Both SFPD and OPD were always heavy handed with the Panthers. I remember when Hampton and Clark were murdered. I was a Junior at Balboa in San Francisco. Classes were suspended for a few days to avoid possible violence. I had friends in Campus chapter of the Panthers. One of them called me at home and advised me to stay home for a few days. I talked it over my Dad and Step Mother. They agreed that avoiding class was the better thing to do.