Decades later, Foerster's family still mourns his death. But just as with any weapon, if you don't know how to use it, if you don't know where to point it, or what you're using it for, you can end up shooting yourself in the foot or killing your sisters or brothers. A poster with photographs of Joanne Chesimard, who changed her name to Assata Shakur, a fugitive for more than 30 years, is on display during a news conference giving updates on the search of Chesimard, Thursday, May 2, 2013, in Newark, N.J. New Jersey State Trooper Werner Foerster, who was killed during a stop on the New Jersey Turnpike in 1973.

If that is a crime, then I am totally guilty.” – Assata Shakur, 2. “Assata: An Autobiography”, p.167, Zed Books, Assata Shakur (1987). "It is still raw and painful for them today," Callahan told ABC News. There's certainly civil rights activist in our history who have moved the narrative forward, she did not.".


After a while, people just think oppression is the normal state of things. We had to learn that we're beautiful. Dreams and reality are opposites. I honestly do because I wish I had been born into a world where it was unnecessary. We must love each other and support … It is the obligation of every person who claims to oppose oppression to resist the oppressor by every means at his or her disposal. But just as with any weapon, if you don’t know how to use it, if you don’t know where to point it, or what you’re using it for, you can end up shooting yourself in the foot or killing your sisters or brothers.” – Assata Shakur, 7. Otherwise I would be a sculptor, or a gardener, carpenter - You know, I would be free to be so much more… I guess part of me or a part of who I am, a part of what I do is being a warrior - a reluctant warrior, a reluctant struggler. I'll be honest with you. Black revolutionaries do not drop from the moon. I have declared war on the rich who prosper on our poverty, the politicians who lie to us with smiling faces, and all the mindless, heartless, robots who protect them and their property.

Trump claimed ballots were 'dumped in a river.' Only a fool lets somebody else tell him who his enemy is. Then in 1971, she changed her name from JoAnne Deborah Bryon to the aforementioned Assata Olugbala Shakur.

“There’s something nice about being able to go to sleep at night saying “You know, tomorrow I’m gonna get up and I’m gonna do this and I’m gonna do that….” I think that being an activist on this planet is a privilege and a pleasure.” – Assata Shakur.

Where there is oppression, there will be resistance.

Even without an extradition treaty, the FBI was able to communicate with law enforcement officials in Cuba and negotiate Ray's return to the U.S. to face the charges.

Subscribe To The Black Detour For The Latest In Black News, History & Culture, Subscribe For The Latest In Black News & History, Lawsuit alleges Minnesota Teacher Assaulted and Segregated Black Elementary Children Away From Another Students, White Man Arrested For Targeting Black Family in ‘Racist Terrorism’ Act, Black hotel worker held at gunpoint by Arizona police files $2.5 million lawsuit against City of Tempe, White trucker charged with hate crime in stabbing of black man in Oregon, 10 James Baldwin Quotes That Are Still Relevant During The Current Racial Tension In America, First National Black Political Convention held in Gary, IN, History of Adam Clayton Powell Jr. the first Black Congressman from the state of New York, Oak Cliff, TX native Dr. Toni Smith opens local pharmacy to help her community, 5 Black Women Activists You’ve Probably Never Heard Of, Richard Spikes Invented Automatic Gear Shift for Automobiles, 10 Revolutionary Quotes By Gil Scott-Heron. Assata Shakur, convicted of killing a police officer, still wanted by FBI 40 years after fleeing to Cuba, President Trump, first lady test positive for COVID-19, Trump adviser Hope Hicks tests positive for COVID, president to quarantine, Ireland court rules that Subway's sandwich bread is not legally bread. Assata Shakur, also known as Joanne Chesimard, a convicted cop killer in the FBI Most Wanted Terrorists list (left), and Mona Hicks, Stanford University's senior … When Black people seriously organize and take up arms to fight for our liberation, there will be a lot of white people who will drop dead from no other reason than their own guilt and fear.”  – Assata Shakur, 8.

Shakur words still impact the world today here are 10 quotes made by the revolutionary. you askin me about freedom. If he’s not about liberation, if he’s not about struggle, if he ain’t about building a strong Black family, if he ain’t about building a strong Black nation, then he ain’t about nothing.” – Assata Shakur, SEE ALSO: History of Adam Clayton Powell Jr. the first Black Congressman from the state of New York, 6.

After a while, people just think oppression is the normal state of things.

We have nothing to lose but our chains. A revolutionary woman can't have no reactionary man.

We must love each other and support each other. “Assata: An Autobiography”, p.67, Zed Books, Assata Shakur (1987). We learned the importance of coming together and being active. 1. Then in 1984 she was granted  political asylum in Cuba. In 2015, after President Barack Obama opened U.S. communications with Cuba, the country has helped Ehrie and his team with another case. “At this time I’d like to say a few words especially to my sisters: SISTERS. “Assata: An Autobiography”, p.277, Zed Books, Assata Shakur (1987). It is our duty to win.

The encounter ended in the deaths of the activists’ friend Zayd Shakur and State Trooper Werner Foerster. The usual way the people are taught to think in amerika is that each subject is in a little compartment and has no relation to any other subject. No one is going to give you the education you need to overthrow them. But to become free, you have to be acutely aware of being a slave. "This was a heinous execution of a law enforcement officer, cut and dry. There's a $2 million reward for any information that leads to the now-71-year-old's capture. "So that's why we are here to make sure that we do everything we can to have her serve out her sentence.". The less you think about your oppression, the more your tolerance for it grows. Shakur would return to New York City and join the Harlem branch of the organization. If we are not committed to saving this earth we will be buying designer air filters and gas masks with little Nike swishes on them. We must love each other and support … I know a whole more about what freedom isn't than about what it is, 'cause I've never been free. At this time I'd like to say a few words especially to my sisters: SISTERS. Hip Hop can be a very powerful weapon to help expand young people's political and social consciousness. We must love each other and support … On May 2, 1973, Shakur and two BLA members were stopped by two New Jersey state troopers for a traffic infraction. There was also forensic evidence that supported her assertions, but she was found guilty of murder in 1977 and sentenced to life in prison plus 30 years. Freedom! May 16, 4:49 PM. Action synthesizes them. Then she started working with other activist groups and participated in student rights, anti-Vietnam war, and black liberation movements. In November 2018, John Ray III fled to Cuba after allegedly killing his girlfriend. There are no exceptions to the rule, no easy out. 24/7 coverage of breaking news and live events. Follow AzQuotes on Facebook, Twitter and Google+.

She began working in the BPP breakfast program but became critical of the organization, because of their reluctance to collaborate with other black organizations. In recognition of National Police Week, the FBI is highlighting seven cases involving violence against law enforcement officers, one of which involves Shakur.

“I have declared war on the rich who prosper on our poverty, the politicians who lie to us with smiling … Improve yourself, find your inspiration, share with friends. It is our duty to fight for our freedom. Sources: The methods of peaceful protests are not capable of being effective, because in reality most people pay little attention to things that are not abrasive. We had to learn about Black power. Civil rights activist turned convicted murderer, Assata Shakur, continues to be a "top priority" for law enforcement officials, even 40 years after she was broken out of a Clifton, New Jersey, prison and fled to Cuba. On a trip to Oakland, California Shakur became acquainted with the Black Panther Party (BPP).

Given the anti-police rhetoric that foams from the mouth of the organization, that is hardly surprising. “Assata: An Autobiography”, p.196, Zed Books, There is a mistake in the text of this quote. I can only share my vision with you of the future, about what freedom is. BLACK PEOPLE WILL NEVER BE FREE UNLESS BLACK WOMEN PARTICIPATE IN EVERY ASPECT OF OUR STRUGGLE, ON EVERY LEVEL OF OUR STRUGGLE. If he's not about liberation, if he's not about struggle, if he ain't about building a strong Black family, if he ain't about building a strong Black nation, then he ain't about nothing. Chesimard, also known as Assata Shakur, was allegedly assisted in escaping from prison by Susan Rosenberg, a member of the board of directors for the left-wing Thousand Currents group, which handles the intake of donations to Black Lives Matter. Since the U.S. does not have an extradition treaty with the country, Shakur seems untouchable as she enters her golden years. Every day we present the best quotes! “Before going back to college, i knew i didn’t want to be an intellectual, spending my life in books and libraries without knowing what the hell is going on in the streets. Fact-checking Trump and Biden during 1st 2020 presidential debate.
We need to be weapons of mass construction, weapons of mass love. The two have to go together.” – Assata Shakur, 10. Especially the police, who have done so much dirt to Black people – their guilty conscience tells them to be afraid.

Only a fool lets somebody else tell him who his enemy is....never let your enemies choose your enemies for you. There's certainly a difference between that and a civil rights activist. “Assata: An Autobiography”, p.65, Zed Books, Assata Shakur (1987). Sundiata Acoli then known as Clark Edward Squire and Joanne Chesimard, who changed her name to Assata Shakur, were convicted of the murder. Shakur, Assata, Assata: An Autobiography (Chicago:  Zed Books Ltd., 1987); Mychal Denzel Smith, “Assata Shakur is Not a Terrorist,” The Nation (7 May 1913); Shakur, Assata, “An Open Letter from Assata” 1998; www.fbi.gov. People have power if we unite. “A revolutionary woman can’t have no reactionary man. The less you think about your oppression, the more your tolerance for it grows.

She began attending meetings held by the Golden Drums, where she met her husband, Louis Chesimard. "There's always an alternate narrative," said Callahan, who grew up in a law enforcement family and heard about Foerster’s murder as a child. We need to change ourselves. We had to relearn something forcefully taken from us.