Getting Some Hands-On Knowledge of The Case of Assata Shakur
Happy Birthday (Feliz Cumpleanos!) Assata Olugbala Shakur from Terryhowcott.com
In 2007, this page was offered as an online birthday card to Assata Shakur. Now, it is that, and also a year-round launch to give a peek into the life and memories of Assata Shakur, and to expose the false charges against and ongoing U.S. government obsession with this amazing woman who we love and respect.
From July 16, 2007, thereafter and forever more.
Of course, this is long overdue, but also most timely. Any and all reminders and tributes to Assata Shakur's 60th birthday - and her 28 years in exile - should shake us all to certain guilt, as none of us can ever do enough to spread the message about this brave and inspiring woman.
While we nibble and quibble finding ways to oppress, hurt and maim one another - the "devil is busy" as Grandmother used to say - hoping we'll continue to present more aggressively with one another and more passively with him.
Many of us remember participating or observing the work - the screaming - the hollering, the raised fists - and the pride as we underwent the roller coaster of watching now Professor revolutionary, activist Angela Yvonne Davis escape, stand trial and finally overcome the brutal dishonesty that nearly swept her off to prison.
Handsoffassata.org talks of the "onslaught against Black people in America," that "resulted in the assassination of, unlawful imprisonment of, and exile of hundreds of Black activists during the late 1960s and early 70's."
Among other things, they remind us of Geromino Pratt and Dhoruba bin Wihad both of whom it was finally admitted had "spent years in prison for crimes they did not commit."
There are millions of supporters for an immediate pull back from this assault against Assata Shakur who in her humbleness always reminds us to be concerned about others.
The grassroots movement around the world in support of Assata Shakur is nothing short of phenomenal. A vast march of thoughtful, resolute, progressive young folk to elders around the world and throughout the Diaspora are steadfast in their call of, "Hand's Off Assata."
Assata in Cuba
Interview with Kenneth Snodgrass, Part 2
Talib Kweli, Alice Walker, Mos Def, Angela Davis, Congresswoman Maxine Waters, Poet, Author extraordinaire Sonia Sanchez, Congressman Keith Ellison and countless public thinkers, entertainers and elected officials are vocal and committed to participating in the movement to protect Assata Shakur who was convicted of crimes that were either unlikely or downright impossible for her to commit.
All of this is important to note given countless extremist writings charging her with "cop killing" and being a member of an "ultra violent" organization.
Noone condones the use of violence outside of self defense - yet as we reflect upon the murders of Sean Bell in New York, and a lone 92 year old Black woman, Kathryn Johnston, who was murdered in her own home in Atlanta by Atlanta police (who "left her to bleed to death on the floor, while they planted marijuana in her basement) - we know that open victimization and murder of Black people was even more prevalent in the 60's and the 70's than it is today.
Below is exhibited some of the work that is evidence of the work being accomplished to protect Assata Shakur as she attempts to simply live her life.
This is in absolute solidarity with the movement associated with celebrating Assata Shakur's 60th Birthday as we assist in carrying the message to those who have yet to learn about the case surrounding Assata Sakur and many other political prisoners* - whether incarcerated or driven abroad.
This is an interview with Assata Shakur audio (Mp3) as she discusses the tragic details of her arrest, her trial, being victimized and tortured, the unlikelihood that she would have survived - and her subsequent daring escape.
Exclusive Interview of Assata Shakur by Elombe Brath and Rosemari Mealy
Black World Today, 1997
"I believe that the only way that people like myself and others who are in prison or exiled will ever be "safe" is for people to build a strong movement around the issue of political repression."
The injustice of Assata Shakur's trial by Atty. Lennex Hinds
"The jury at Assata's trial for the same offences was permitted to speculate that her "mere presence" at a scene of violence, with weapons in the vehicle, was sufficient to sustain a conviction - even though three neurologists testified at the trial that her median nerve had been severed by gunshot wounds, rendering her unable to pull a trigger, and that her clavicle had been shattered by a shot that could only have been made while she was seated in the car with her hands raised."
Detroit Resolution Supports Freedom Fighter Assata Shakur
At workers.org
"WHEREAS, Notwithstanding the fact that defense lawyers presented objective medical and other evidence that substantiated Shakur's contention that her hands were raised when she was shot, she was nevertheless convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment plus 33 years."
This is the official statement after in 2005, a million dollar bounty was offered for the return of Assata Shakur - then also listing her as a "domestic terrorist."
National Conference of Black Lawyers Demands: Hands Off Assata Shakur
"Assata Shakur's failure to find justice within the U.S. system compels NCBL to analyze her circumstances according to international law standards.
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights provides in various of its Articles that everyone is entitled to: freedom from arbitrary arrest, detention and exile; freedom from torture, and cruel and inhuman or degrading treatment; the right to a presumption of innocence at trial; and the right to seek and to enjoy in other countries asylum from persecution."
"I believe everywhere you can find wisdom, you should suck in in, breathe it in."
Assata Shakur: Case of Oppression in the U.S.
"The tragic story of Assata Shakur is alarming to say the least. The state pressed a case when it had none and used its authority to rig a guilty verdict."
"On April 2, Cuba forcefully turned down any request for Assata's extradition.
A spokesman for the Foreign Ministry, Alejandro Gonzalez, said Assata was "a civil rights activist."
He stated that she would not be extradited, as the government of Cuba has sufficient reasons to disagree with the charges against her and fears that she might be the target of unfair treatment."
Assata Shakur: The Government's Terrorist is Our Community's Heroine
At Indigenous Uprising
"Included on a short list of the many people who have made that call and were either criminalized, terrorized, killed or blacklisted are Paul Robeson, Martin Luther King, Schwerner, Chaney and Goodman, Medgar Evers and Ida B. Wells."
"But after awhile I began to understand that oppressed people --just by being oppressed -- suffer serious wounds.
You might go into a store, and somebody might follow you around the store, and you would have a choice of how to react: you could confront them and say "Why are you following me around the store?" or you could say to yourself:
"Well, I came here to buy some socks, so let me just concentrate on buying the socks." But you still feel the pain."
"I am moved by her commitment as expressed in a poem she wrote: "It is our duty to fight for our freedom. It is our duty to win. We must love each other and support each other.
"I support the right of all nations to grant political asylum to individuals fleeing political persecution. The United States grants political asylum to individuals from all over the world who successfully prove they are fleeing political persecution.
Other sovereign nations have the same right, including the sovereign nation of Cuba . . . . the most vicious and reprehensible acts were taken against the leaders and organizations associated with the Black Power or Black Liberation Movement.
Assata Shakur, was a member of the Black Panther Party, one of the leading groups associated with the Black Liberation Movement.
The Black Panther Party was the primary target of U.S. domestic government political harassment and persecution during this era. This illegal, clandestine political persecution was wrong in 1973, and remains wrong today."
"And i believe that seeds grow into sprouts.
And sprouts grow into trees.
i believe in the magic of the hands.
And in the wisdom of the eyes.
i believe in rain and tears.
And in the blood of infinity."
A review of the 93 minute 'docudrama,' entitled, "Assata."
"Fred Baker blends documentary-type material, including interviews with former Panther leader Kathleen Cleaver, now a law professor at Emory University in Atlanta, with a love story revolving around two young African American characters who are both committed to finding out the truth about Assata Skakur."
"The resolution will also demand that Shakur be granted amnesty to allow her to return to the U.S. from Cuba, where she has been in political exile since 1984."
"Writer, actress Akua Taylor is a Magna Cum Laude graduate of Fisk University in Nashville, TN who developed the one woman show about Shakur as a senior project. "This piece is Assata's side of the story, from her point of view."
Women Outlaws: Politics of Gender and Resistance in the US Criminal Justice System
"In this paper l focus on the revolutionary spirit and commitment of Angela Davis and Assata Shakur—two iconic Black women and imprisoned intellectuals, who were hounded by the state (US) in the 1970s and beyond.
I wish to highlight their views on slavery, on freedom, and abolitionism.
How is it that both these women, passionate in their pursuit for social justice for oppressed peoples became political outlaws?"
Please note, some of you may know, this documentary had been pulled from terryhowcott.com in cooperation with a group insisting that proceeds for the documentary were specifically for advancing the cause of Assata Shakur and her plight.
Now I receive a communication including a statement from Assata Shakur stating the following:
The video "Eyes On The Rainbow" is offered at many locations, please do a google search, we have been contacted by those who seek to profit from the struggle of our People, this video is over 10 yrs old, and it is not copywritten. I leave you with this quote from Mama Assata " . . . The Black press and the progressive media, as well as Black civil rights organizations, have historically played an essential role in the struggle for social justice.
We should continue and expand that tradition. We should create media outlets that help to educate our people and our children, and not annihilate their minds. I am only one woman. I own no TV stations or radio stations or newspapers. But I believe that people need to be educated as to what is going on and to understand the connection between the news media and the instruments of repression in America.
All I have are my voice, my spirit and the will to tell the truth.
I sincerely ask those of you in the Black media, those of you in the progressive media and those of you who believe in truth and freedom to publish my story." - Assata Shakur
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Afro-Cuban filmmaker Gloria Rolando
"Rolando is best known for films such as:
Oggun: An Eternal Presence, which explores how the Orisha Oggun, the god of war and peace, metals, and civilization, was experienced in the life of Cuban Yoruba singer Lazaro Ros;
My Footsteps in Baragua, a recounting of the history of a West Indian community in Cuba; and Eyes of the Rainbow, a documentary on Assata Shakur, the Black Panther and Black Liberation Army leader who took refuge in Cuba after years of struggles in the United States."
A political prisoner is someone held in prison or otherwise detained, perhaps under house arrest, because their ideas or image are deemed by a government to either challenge or threaten the authority of the state.
This may be a prisoner of conscience, deprived of freedom of speech.
In many cases, political prisoners are imprisoned with no legal veneer directly through extrajudicial processes.
However, it also happens that political prisoners are arrested and tried with a veneer of legality, where false criminal charges, manufactured evidence, and unfair trials are used to disguise the fact that an individual is a political prisoner.
This is common in situations which may otherwise be decried nationally and internationally as a human rights violation and suppression of a political dissident.
A political prisoner can also be someone that has been denied bail unfairly, denied parole when it would reasonably have been given to a prisoner charged with a comparable crime, or special powers may be invoked by the judiciary.
Particularly in this latter situation, whether an individual is regarded as a political prisoner may depend upon subjective political perspective or interpretation of the evidence.
Beginning List of Well Known Supporters of Assata Shakur
Angela Y. Davis
Susan Taylor
Charles Mingus, III
Khephra Burns
asha bandele
Rose Brewer
Julia Sudbury
Talib Kweli
Reverend Herbert Daughtry
Kevin Powell
Kimberly Elise
Greg Tate
Goapele
Michaela Angela Davis
Harry Allen
Leslie Cagan, United for Peace and Justice
Evelyn C. White
Michael Eric Dyson
Alice Walker
Dr. David Spain (a pathologist from Brookdale Community College, testified that her bullet scars as well as X-rays supported her claim that her arms were raised, and that there was "no conceivable way" the first bullet could have hit Shakur's clavicle if her arm was down).
Gloria Rolando
The National Conference of Black Lawyers
Sonia Sanchez
Congressman Keith Ellison
Pastors For Peace
Assata's Song
Paris (Painting his view of the bigger picture).
Honoring Marilyn Buck who was convicted of aiding Sister Assata in escaping after she was brutalized and threatened with still more harm.
She was released at the age of 62 on July 15, 2010.
Poet and political prisoner Marilyn Buck freed After 25 Years in Prison
Mariann Wizard, who organized around Marilyn Buck's release based upon humanitarian grounds, said this about her conviction:
"Marilyn was accused of sensational acts of insurrection.
Many otherwise liberal-minded Americans are unable to get past the
violence of the confrontations between the police and the small
groups of Black and white revolutionaries with whom Buck was linked .
Neither give due weight to the e extraordinary repressive measures
undertaken by the U.S. government to crush lawful dissent against unjust policies at home and abroad.
Behind the shadow of COINTELPRO (the FBI's Counter Intelligence Program), law enforcement agencies operated outside the rule of law against Movement activists . . . "
She said while in prison, "The trials, those years of intense repression and US government denunciations of my humanity had beat me up rather badly.
Whatever my voice had been, it was left frayed. I could scarcely speak." Instead, Marilyn wrote. “For prisoners, writing is a life raft to save one from drowning in a prison swamp.
I could not write a diary or a journal; I was a political prisoner. Everything I had was subject to investigation, invasion and confiscation.
I was a censored person. In defiance, I turned to poetry, an art of speaking sparely, but flagrantly."
"For her acts of selfless courage on behalf of victims of American criminal behavior, Marilyn has spent 25 years as a political prisoner of the United States government."
(Note, the incredible photo of here of Marilyn Buck with Bro. Kwame Ture.)
"Assata Shakur is a great human being. She should be left in peace and happiness. Any attempt to make her suffer is utterly demonic." - Alice Walker
Quotes From Assata Shakur
"I realized that I was connected to Africa. I wasn't just a Colored girl. I was part of a whole world that wanted a better life. I'm part of a majority and not a minority. My life has been a life of growth. IF YOU'RE NOT GROWIN...G, you're not going to understand real love.
If you're not reaching out to help others then you're shrinking. My life has been active. I'm not a spectator"
"Part of being a revolutionary is creating a vision that is more humane. That is more fun, too. That is more loving. It's really working to create something beautiful."
"I realized that I was connected to Africa"
"I think that in order to struggle you have to be creative. In my life, creativity has been something that has sustained me; it awoke my spiritual struggle."
"I couldn't see how we could seriously struggle without having a strong sense of collectivity, without being responsible FOR each other and TO each other."
"We can't afford to be spectators while our lives deteriorate. We have to truly love our people and work to make that love stronger."
"We had to LEARN that we're beautiful. We had to RELEARN something that was forcefully taken from us.
We had to LEARN about Black power. People have power if we unite. We LEARNED the importance of coming together and being active" (Capitals mine.)
"Love is contraband in hell, - cause love is a acid -"that eats away bars.
But you, me, and tomorrow - hold hands and make vows - that struggle will multiply.
The hacksaw has two blades. The shotgun has two barrels. We are pregnant with freedom.
We are a conspiracy.
It is our duty to fight for our freedom - It is our duty to win. We must love each other and support each other. We have nothing to lose but our chains.
- Assata Shakur, An Autobiography
" . . . love can not be arrested." - Marilyn Buck
Loving Us
by Joshua Denson
"A song I wrote, produced and created after reading the autobiography of ASSATA SHAKUR."
Painting above. Would love to know who is the artist of this gorgeous painting.
(Mention which box, and your comment will hyperlink people back here)
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