You have to understand that people have to pay a price for

Hear the fiery words of Fred Hampton, the young lion of Chicago, whose voice was silenced but whose spirit still roars through the ages: “You have to understand that people have to pay a price for peace. If you dare to struggle, you dare to win.” In these few words lies the essence of resistance, the creed of those who will not bow quietly before injustice. Hampton, who gave his life at only twenty-one years of age, understood what many forget: that peace is not given freely by oppressors, but wrested from them by those willing to sacrifice, to fight, and to endure.

The meaning is both simple and profound. True peace is not the silence of submission nor the quiet of chains; it is the harmony born of justice. But justice demands a price. It calls for courage, for risk, for the willingness to endure hardship. Those who fear struggle will never taste victory, for the world does not hand freedom to the timid. To struggle is to embrace the path of resistance, and to resist is to open the door to victory. Hampton’s words burn with the truth that peace without struggle is illusion, but peace born of struggle is everlasting.

The origin of this creed comes from Hampton’s own life. As a leader of the Black Panther Party in the late 1960s, he worked tirelessly to build community programs—free breakfasts for children, medical clinics for the poor—while also organizing against police brutality and systemic oppression. For this, he was targeted, surveilled, and finally killed in his sleep by a coordinated raid. Hampton knew long before that such a fate might be his. Yet he did not shrink from it, for he believed that the price of silence was greater than the price of struggle. His words were the reflection of his own resolve: better to dare and fall, than to never dare and live enslaved.

History itself confirms this law. Consider the American Revolution. The colonists longed for liberty, but Britain’s crown demanded submission. They could have remained quiet, keeping the appearance of peace, yet living as subjects with no voice. Instead, they dared to struggle—outnumbered, outgunned, yet unyielding. Many died, many lost homes and fortunes, yet in their daring they won a new nation. The price was high, but the reward was true peace, born not of surrender but of freedom.

Another echo resounds in the life of Nelson Mandela. He endured twenty-seven years in prison for daring to stand against apartheid. He could have chosen comfort, could have renounced the struggle and lived quietly. Instead, he embraced the price of chains, knowing that without it, his people would remain forever bound. In the end, his struggle became his triumph, and he emerged not as a broken man but as a president, uniting a nation. His life, like Hampton’s words, proves the eternal truth: if you dare to struggle, you dare to win.

The lesson for us is clear: do not be deceived into thinking that peace comes without cost. Whether in nations, in communities, or in the secret chambers of our hearts, peace requires courage, effort, and sacrifice. If you long for harmony, you must confront injustice. If you long for freedom, you must be willing to bear the wounds of the fight. To hide from the struggle is to accept chains; to embrace the struggle is to open the path to victory.

Therefore, beloved listener, remember Hampton’s creed. When you face injustice, do not bow your head and call it peace. Pay the price—whether in sweat, in labor, in sacrifice, or in courage. Dare to struggle, for in that struggle lies the seed of triumph. And know that every step you take against oppression, every act of courage, is a step toward a peace that no tyrant can destroy.

So let these words echo in your soul: “You have to understand that people have to pay a price for peace. If you dare to struggle, you dare to win.” Let them be a summons to bravery, a warning against apathy, and a song of hope. For though the road of struggle is steep, it is the only road that leads to the mountaintop of freedom.