Cloudy Star

Today in Black Excellence: Akua Njeri—writer, activist and former member of the Illinois Chapter of The Black Panther Party.

“People are still being murdered in the houses, wrong houses, that are so-called 'raided by police’.”

—Akua Njeri

What was Akua Njeri like in her earlier years?

Akua Njeri, known as Deborah Johnson at the time, became an activist at the very young age of twelve. From marching with Martin Luther King, Jr. to protesting slumlords in the city as a teen, Nehru was committed to social causes in Chicago. In the late 1960s, 17-year-old Njeri attended an event sponsored by a Chicago college’s Black Student Union. It was at this event that she met her future fiance Fred Hampton, chairman of the Illinois Black Panther Party, who was murdered on December 4, 1969, during an illegal raid of their home.

What has Njeri been up to?

Njeri has since continued to dedicate her life to the cause. She has served as president of the National People’s Democratic Uhuru Movement, an interracial organization dedicated to self-determination for Black Americans, and as chairperson of the December 4th Committee, which fights to defend and maintain the legacy of the Black Panther Party. In 1991, she published My Life with the Black Panther Party, recounting her experiences, including the deadly raid and its aftermath. She continues her lifelong commitment to serving communities in need, coordinating clothing and fresh vegetable drives.

Original portrait by Tumblr Creatr @princecanti

Akua Njeri's quote from the 50th anniversary of the fateful day in which officers murdered Chairman Fred Hampton is what inspired this piece. As such, I wanted to emphasize that statement by drawing attention to just how true that quote would continue to be into the following year—highlighting the dates of Fred Hampton’s death in 1969 and Breonna Taylor’s in 2020.