|
Title: HANDS OFF ASSATA SHAKUR!!!! Post by: erzulie on May 04, 2005, 06:02:05 PM --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
U.S. Government Declares $1 Million Bounty For Assata Shakur, Tupac's Godmother By Houston Williams Date: 5/2/2005 6:00 PM The federal government has announced a $1 million bounty for the capture of fugitive JoAnne Chesimard, who is widely known as Assata Shakur. Assata, who is also Tupac’s godmother, has lived in Cuba nearly 30 years after escaping a maximum security jail. Today [May 2] represents the 32nd anniversary of a notorious clash between members of the Black Liberation Army and the New Jersey state troopers. At the end of the conflict, two were dead and two were incarcerated, including Assata. Rappers like Paris and Common have written sympathetic, reflective songs about Assata [“Assata’s Song” and “A Song For Assata” respectively]. Common explained his support of Shakur. “The reason I was even connected to this woman is because of her humanity and her passion for people,” the Chicago native told AllHipHop.com. “And when I met her on a Black August trip four years ago and I learned she was innocent and that all the pain and hate that had been placed upon her, she'd overcome. There's no way than anyone in this world should want to harm her. She’s such a beautiful human being.” Accounts of that fateful day vary. On May 2 1973, New Jersey State Trooper James Harper pulled over Assata, Zayd Shakur and Sundiata Acoli for an apparent broken taillight on their vehicle. The incident rapidly escalated into a gunfight and resulted in the deaths of Zayd Shakur and Trooper Werner Foerster. Harper and Assata were also injured in the melee. The authorities maintain that Assata murdered Foerster executioner style after he was injured, but her lawyers charge that she herself was too severely wounded to do such and act. She was hit twice and her gunshot wounds were inflicted as she surrendered. Nevertheless, Assata was convicted and served six and a half years in prison at the maximum security wing of the Clinton Correctional Facility for Women in New Jersey. In 1979, with the help of others, she escaped and found asylum in Cuba. She asserts that she was living in deplorable conditions and was brutalized by correctional officers. Tupac’s godfather Mutulu Shakur, a political prisoner, was also sent to prison and accused of helping Assata escape Clinton. Despite her legal status, he still has staunch supporters stateside. “Assata is innocent. She is a legitimate political refugee in Cuba. Castro recognizes her as such because the case against her in New Jersey nearly 30 years ago was an attempt to frame a Black revolutionary who was herself shot and tortured by police,” writer/author Dream Hampton told AllHipHop.com. Hampton, author of Jay-Z’s upcoming autobiography “The Black Book,” is also a member of the Malcolm X Grassroots Movement, helps organize Black August and helped launch the “Hands off Assata” campaign. “But we should never lose sight of the fact that she's innocent. And now more than ever she needs our support,” Hampton said. Hampton said that three experts testified in the case and there was no gun power residue present to support the theory that she murdered officer Foerster. In her own words, Assata, now 57, has proclaimed her innocence in writings now widely posted online. “I am a 20th century escaped slave. Because of government persecution, I was left with no other choice than to flee from the political repression, racism and violence that dominate the US government's policy towards people of color,” Shakur has written in the past. “I am an ex-political prisoner, and I have been living in exile in Cuba since 1984. I have been a political activist most of my life, and although the U.S. government has done everything in its power to criminalize me, I am not a criminal, nor have I ever been one.” On the classic song “Rebel Without A Pause,” Chuck D of Public Enemy declared himself to be a “supporter of Chesimard” and Hampton concurred that the fugitive continues to inspire the generations after her escape to Cuba – as she is vilified in the mainstream press and domestic government. “Black August, our annual Hip-Hop benefit concert, is inspired in part by Assata. The artist Regardless of her grassroots backing, the federal authorities haven’t eased their pursuit of Assata Shakur and plan to use international influence to squeeze her out of her Cuban sanctuary. "She is now 120 pounds of money," State Police Superintendent Rick Fuentes said to the NJ Star-Ledger. "[This new initiative] is going to exert pressures that weren't in place nationally and internationally before. And we're going to follow up to make sure everybody is aware of this both inside and outside of Cuba." The bounty on Assata Shakur is the largest reward ever placed on an individual in the state of New Jersey. Title: Re: HANDS OFF ASSATA SHAKUR!!!! Post by: erzulie on May 04, 2005, 06:12:15 PM Assata Shakur is one of many civil rights activists that were targeted
by the government's COINTELPRO policy, which was designed to imprison, assassinate and defame black, Native American, Latino and Asian activists of the 60s, 70s and 80s. Assata is now a political refugee of Cuba. May 2nd was the anniversary of Assata Shakur's daring escape from federal prison over a quarter of a century ago, after being falsely accused and imprisoned for the murder a New Jersey State Trooper. This false and unlawful conviction was motivated by her involvement with the Black Panthers and the Black Liberation Army, two very maligned, but important organizations in the civil rights legacy of America. The Department of Justice, New Jersey State Police and State of New Jersey celebrating Assata’s escape anniversary by recently issuing a new $1 Million Bounty on Assata Shakur, in hopes that Caribbean citizens and travelers, in particular Cubans, would betray Assata and the civil rights legacy that she continues to represent, providing critical information to rogue mercenaries and bounty hunters that might be enticed to enter Cuba illegally, kidnap Assata and extradite her to the U.S. We are pleading with all Cuban politicians, military personnel, underworld figures, citizens and those Cubans living in the U.S. to not be tempted by blood money. If Assata is found, she will die in prison. When the bounty hunters come knocking at your door, consider that Assata has been as much a supporter of Cuban interest as she has of Afrikan-American interests. She is your sister as much as ours. Remember it is the American government that has imposed economic sanctions on Cuba for decades, while its allies are allowed to participate openly in illegal and inhumane acts on it citizenry and the world. These sanctions are the reason that Cuba does not prosper. These economic sanctions are the reason why it is so difficult for you to visit your family. The current Bush administration has every intention of continuing those sanctions, with or without the arrest of Assata. This is the same gov't that would like us to believe that those of Latin-, Chicano- and/or Amerindian- descent are not as much Americans as anyone else, although this is YOUR ANCESTRAL land, a fact which can never be diminished by BIASED immigration laws. It is the U.S. government that backs companies like Del Monte and Chiquita Brands International that employ private armies to force small Latin-American communities to grow specific fruit and vegetables for American consumption. This is the same government that blames the Caribbean, and Central and South America for the cocaine and marijuana trade, although the drugs manage to penetrate the worlds most advanced border patrol system in the world everyday! (During the 90s trial of Lt. Col. Ollie North we learned this happens often, with the help of CIA and FBI agents that work under direct orders for Washington D.C. officials, American Banks and American business owners.) How can the Dept. of Justice, and I quote, transform a woman, mother, and grandmother into "120lbs of money" when they are the ones engaged in criminal actions daily? My Cuban sisters and brothers do not be tempted by blood money. Your assistance in capturing Assata will not bring Cuba more support from America. America will never support YOUR national goals. America has and will always be interested in "pretending to care" in hopes of annexing Cuba, just as it presently doing to Iraq. It is nothing more than a potential military installation and vacation destination in the eyes of wealthy America. Lastly we beg all Spiritual Communities of all Traditional Afrikan Religions to divine and perform ebo and/or adimu collectively on behalf of Assata Shakur and her family, asking that the Orisa, Abosum, Neteru, Loa, etc to perform pre-emptive strikes on her behalf and only show the persons behind this sisterhunt the mercy that they show Assata. There is every reason to believe that they might try to capture this summer or sooner. We especially need the participation of Traditionalists living in the Caribbean to get involved. We need the native Spirits and energies of that that area working on behalf of Assata. If you believe in freedom, then you believe in Assata. If you believe in having a voice, then you believe in Assata. If you believe that government should not be motivated by race or economic interest, then you believe in Assata. For more information, including fliers for distribution, go to www.assatashakur.org A Spanish language version of all materials is underway. Regards, The Roots and Rooted · Africentric · For Those that Love African Religion / Spirituality · Orisa Olokun · Akan · Kemetian · Vodun · Holistic Living / Healing · Earth Changes · Palo · African Priests & Devotees Team http://rootsandrooted.proboards19.com/index.cgi Title: Re: HANDS OFF ASSATA SHAKUR!!!! Post by: erzulie on May 04, 2005, 07:07:54 PM Calling all Africans peoples committed to African liberation, this is a time to ACT. do not simply witness another freedom fighter be discredited, bullied, kidnapped, imprisoned by the US injustice system. yes, there are many causes and millions of African peoples being downpressed globally. but we have a great responsibility to those who have worked (and continue to work) for African liberation. we must actively protect, honor, stand beside our Warriors. educate yourself on her contributions and her case. talk to people about Assata Shakur. put up flyers. organize within your organizations. write politicians. creatively protest! do NOT let these bounty hunters kipnap one of our most beloved Black activists. let them know an attack on Assata is an attack on the all Black peoples committed to justice, and we will fight back.
in the name of Harriet Tubman, Fred Hampton, Paul Bogle, Nat Turner, Sister Nanny, Steven Biko, the Mau Mau fighters, "fugitives" all, peace and strength to you. HANDS OFF ASSATA SHAKUR! AGITATE, EDUCATE, ORGANIZE! More Info on Assasta Shakur: http://www.assatashakur.org ============================================ U.S. Department of Justice has posted a $1 million bounty for the capture of Assata Shakur (Tupac Shakur's Godmother). Black politicians SOLD OUT Assata Shakur one time, now these politicians below must Vocally, Politically, and Openly Support Assata Shakur!!! Let these black politicians know how you feel about them. Let these black politicians know what they must do. Call, Fax, and Distribute the Flyer Attached http://www.panafrican.tv/flyer_assata.doc Assata Shakur Wanted Poster May 1, 2005: http://www.state.nj.us/lps/njsp/new...ard_english.pdf --Sold Out Assata Shakur-- Cynthia McKinney Al Sharpton (wore a wire to set up Assata Shakur: source Ron Howell, Newsday, October 21, 1988) John Conyers, Jr Jesse Jackson, Jr. Sheila Jackson-Lee Chaka Fattah Maxine Waters Carrie Meek --Too Scared to Vote For Assata Shakur-- Alcee L. Hastings John Lewis Bobby Rush (source: Selling Out Assata by Mumia Abu-Jamal and September 14, 1998 HCR 254) Selling Out Assata by Mumia Abu-Jamal: http://www.assatashakur.org/forums/...read.php?t=4998 View Resolution: http://www.afrocubaweb.com/assata5.htm#Text View Resolution: http://commdocs.house.gov/committee...hfa48706_0f.htm Cynthia McKinney 4th District Address North DeKalb Mall 2050 Lawrenceville Highway, Suite D-46 Decatur, Georgia 30033 Phone: 404-633-0927 Fax : 404-633-0968 Maxine Waters 10124 S. Broadway Suite 1 Los Angeles, CA 90003 323-757-8900 phone 323-757-9506 fax John Conyers, Jr 669 Federal Building 231 W. Lafayette Detroit, MI 48226 (313) 961-5670 (313) 226-2085 Fax John.Conyers@mail.house.gov Jesse Jackson, Jr. 2120 East 71st Street Chicago, IL 60649 (773) 241-6500 fax (773) 241-6503 John Lewis The Equitable Building 100 Peachtree Street, N.W. Suite # 1920 Atlanta, GA 30303 (404) 659-0116 Phone (404) 331-0947 Fax Sheila Jackson-Lee 1919 Smith Street Suite 1180 Houston, Texas 77002 (713) 655-0050 (713) 655-1612 Fax Chaka Fattah 4104 Walnut Street Philadelphia, Pa. 19104 Phone: 215-387-6404 Bobby Rush 700-706 E. 79th. St. Chicago, IL 60619 phone: 773-224-6500 fax: 773-224-9624 Alcee L. Hastings 5725 Corporate Way Suite 208 West Palm Beach, FL 33407 Tel: (561) 684-0565 Fax: (561) 684-3613 Carrie Meek 460 NE 2nd Ave Miami, FL 33132 305-579-5220 Phone 305-579-5221 Fax Write Your Rep. http://www.house.gov/writerep/ |