"...you're asking me about freedom. I will be honest with you. I know a whole lot more about what freedom is not than what it is, 'cause I have never been free..."-Mama Assata Shakur
If we don't constantly talk about those who have or continue the fight for the liberation of the Black Race-they might cease to exist, both in memory and ultimately in history.
This week marked the 72nd anniversary of the birth of one of the most fearless Warriors of our Race, Mama Assata Olugbala Shakur. Born 16th of July, 1947 in the United States of AmeriKKKa.
She was part of the Black Panther Party (BPP) and the Black Liberation Army (BLA) in the late 60s and 70s. From the late 70s and like most Black Panther Warriors, she became a target of the anti-Black FBI.
Based on manufactured charges, they captured, tortured and kept her in solitary confinement. She however managed to escape in 1979.Since then, the anti-Black FBI has not stopped calling for her head.
In 2005, they classified her as a domestic terrorist and placed a $1 million reward for assistance in her capture. In 2013, she became the first woman to be on the FBI list of the Most Wanted Terrorist. And in the same year, the bounty on her head was increased to $2 million. With the help of her fellow Warriors, she eventually escaped to Cuba, where she is currently receiving political asylum. She has been in Cuba since 1985.
Just like Warrior, Mumia Abu Jamal and many other Black Panther Warriors still incarcerated in AmeriKKKa-Warrior Queen Assata continues to live in captivity, for simply daring to stand up to the head of the global-white supremacist beast-the United Snakes of AmeriKKKa, as Kwame Toure would say.
The Black world must never forget Assata Shakur. We must constantly talk about her and tell our children about her heroism. Most importantly, inspired by her example, we must intensify the fight for Black liberation.
Click on the link for rare video footage of her:
Black Pride
