Interview with Nancy Jefferson

OK, talk about walking through Hampton's Fred Hampton's apartment after he was killed.


Immediately that morning, because they was also sealing off everything. Because they also knew my relationship to Fred Hampton, walking through his apartment that afternoon. But I got a group of community people, went straight to the police, and straight up to that house and said, "we are going through here to see what was done at Fre--his place," because all sorts of rumors was going through: they had guns, they were shooting out, and all that. But before I went through Fred's apartment, I knew the next door neighbors, I knew everybody right there. In fact one of the little girls that was lived exactly next door, Earliene[SIC] was courting one of my sons, and she, and they were able to tell us exactly what was going on. How that it was, you know an Illinois Bell telephone truck that was, ah,sitting on the street, and they saw the police get out of that truck--We went into Fred Hampton's apartment and there was blood everywhere. There was blood on the mattress right were he was killed, young man didn't get up and shoot anybody because he was killed on the mattress, sleeping! On the mattress. and we saw that. Oh, lord, it was such a helpless day, at points I felt so helpless. Because I knew Fred was reaching out to me because we were so close, and I felt so hopeless. Ah, how, ah,why Fred, how were they able to do this to Fred. I was able to talk to one of the girls that was in the apartment, ah,as, what was happening, and they were just so confused, they were so hurt, they were saying "they killed us like dogs, we were running, we were trying to hide, and Fred didn't pull the trigger: he never had the chance, you know." It was, it was awful, it was just awful to know that we had a police or a city of chicago that ordered that. That knew that was going on, or order that. And we said, you know it can happen to any of us, and that was fear, shame, sorrsorrow, and what could we do? Why couldn't we help protecting Fred?** And I was reflecting back over, the things that I didn't trust him with, you know? Why wasn't I there to protect him, why didn't I protect him more? You know you was thinking all those things, if we had done more maybe he would have been protected, you know?


Thank you.