Among Fred Hampton's loyal fellow activists in the film, and in real life, was his girlfriend, poet Deborah Johnson. She continued to be an active member of Chicago's BPP after his death and later changed her name to Akua Njeri. Her story is a breath of fresh air, as it not only further humanizes Hampton's character, but it depicts a woman's perspective amid the tumultuous backdrop.
"[A] lot of times when we think about these freedom fighters and revolutionaries, we don't think about them having families ... and plans for the future," director Shaka King stated, per Smithsonian Magazine. "It was really important to focus on that on the Fred side of things."
Unlike most of the people depicted in Judas and the Black Messiah, Njeri is still alive. Njeri gave actress Dominique Fishback free rein to portray her in the film how she deemed fit, albeit with two pieces of advice: "One, that she did not cry when they assassinated Chairman Fred," Fishback told the Los Angeles Times. "And she talked about how the Panthers were a very disciplined people and they didn't speak out of turn, so there were just certain things that she wouldn't have ever said to Chairman Fred."
In the film, and in real life, Njeri became pregnant just short of nine months before Fred's assassination. She gave birth to their son, Fred Hampton Jr., 25 days after the infamous FBI raid that left Hampton and other fellow BPP members dead and more of them injured.
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