The Black Informant

African-American culture, news commentary, politics

This AIN’T Black history to be proud of

(nydailynews.com) “These days, Joanne Chesimard is known as Assata Shakur, but she’s had dozens of other aliases in a life on the run.

She now lives in Cuba, a guest of dictator Fidel Castro, and carries a $1 million price tag for her capture and return to prison in the U.S.

She’s a convicted cop killer who left behind a lifetime of pain for the family of New Jersey State Trooper Werner Foerster.

But in at least one corner of City College, Chesimard is a hero, honored and remembered.

Her latest alias enshrines theGuillermo Morales/Assata Shakur Community Center at the City University of New York’s flagship campus.

It’s a punch to the gut that has furious police groups demanding the publicly funded institution strip away the Black Liberation Army militant’s name.

“We use tax dollars to support an institution that indemnifies a cold-blooded terrorist?” asked Dave Jones, president of the New Jersey State Troopers Fraternal Association.” (more…)

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Some of the students of this school were later asked by the paper if they knew that Chesimard was a convicted cop killer. According to the reporter many said “no”.

While I believe such actions are not representative of mainstream Black America, I often notice that such actions are often “played down” in our demographic while similar scenarios that feature guilty Whites have sparked nationwide outrage. Honoring such an individual is just wrong, especially since she was already convicted of the crime. If she claims to be innocent, then what is the hold up from coming back?

The hold up is two-fold: #1 - She is guilty and doesn’t have the courage to face the rap, and #2 - By staying in Cuba all of these years, like other criminals in exile her image has developed into legend status amongst college students who typically look up to folks that fought against “the system”.

December 12, 2006 - Posted by Duane | Uncategorized | | 9 Comments

9 Comments »

  1. It was found in medical evidence at her trial that it was anatomically impossible for her to have killed that policeman on the NJ Turnpike. It was found as such because she had already surrendered at the policeman’s demand & was shot w/ her hands raised in the air which is illegal & nonsensical.

    She fled to Cuba because she wouldn’t get a fair trial in the U.S. since it hadn’t happened before. The government had fabricated so many crimes to implicate her in because she was a member of the Black Panthers & Black Liberation Army. It’s nothing foreign to the U.S. government to have a trial be in the favor of law enforcement. Especially when the defendents were under the surveillance of COINTELPRO. http://www.assatashakur.org/

    Comment by Jersey Bred | December 12, 2006

  2. She was convicted on a charge of Felony Murder. You can read the rest here (wikipedia–a more non-partisan source than the one you are quoting from). Here is an excerpt:

    On May 2, 1973, Shakur, at that time a member of the Black Liberation Army and no longer a member of the Black Panther Party, was stopped on the New Jersey State Turnpike by State Troopers James Harper and Werner Foerster, along with two Black Panthers: Zayd Shakur and Sundiata Acoli, for driving with a broken taillight. According to police records, Shakur opened fire on the troopers, and a gunfight ensued, during which Zayd Shakur was killed and Trooper Foerster, Assata Shakur and Trooper Harper injured. Shakur then exited the car, took Trooper Foerster’s weapon, and allegedly shot him twice in the head.

    Sundiata Acoli, Assata and Zayd Shakur then got back into their car and drove for eight miles. Sundiata then exited the car with the wounded Assata and the dead Zayd and fled into the woods and was captured after a manhunt the following day.

    Over the next two-and-a-half years Assata Shakur was incarcerated while tried in six different criminal trials in New York and New Jersey. The charges ranged from kidnapping to assault and battery to bank robbery. Shakur was found not guilty in all of these trials except for the murder of both Foerster and her companion Zayd Shakur, for her involvement in the gun battle, despite the defense’s claim that physical evidence showed she could not have fired a weapon during the incident (which is deemed irrelevant to the charge of Felony murder). Shakur’s defense made their case on a claim that although the officers claimed Assata opened fire, it was not physically possible after having been shot in the arm and having a major tendon torn.

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Assata_Shakur

    So again, if she didn’t do it, why is she staying away from the US. If there were others at the crime scene that could have committed this crime, why not bring that “fact” up? No doubt this would be a highly publicized trial where the ratings-hungry media will publicize all findings including those in her favor. Contrary to popular belief, the klan will not be waiting for her at the airport –and I think she knows that.

    **I updated this comment with the following

    If she is found to be completely innocent of this crime, then let her be. This college should at least wait until there is a retrial (if there is one), especially being a school funded by TAXPAYER DOLLARS.

    Comment by Duane | December 12, 2006

  3. Duane

    I fail to agree with you on this one. Let’s start with the definition of felony murder. All it means is that someone died during the commission of a felony. The statue does not state how the person has to die, if the cop would have had heart attack from years of poor health she could have been charged. Bby the way what is the felony in this case? Just because a person doesn’t turn themselves in is not an admission of guilt. Why would you volunteer to go to prison for a crime that you are not guilty of in the first place. Let’s us not forget that many in the black panther party were convicted erroneously.

    Comment by Saudia | December 12, 2006

  4. For starters, the cop died from actual gunshot wounds. Here is a good definition of Felony Murder:

    (again from wikipedia): “For example, a getaway driver for an armed robbery can be convicted of murder if one of the robbers killed someone in the process of the robbery, even though the driver was not present at and did not expect the killing. In jurisdictions that also have the death penalty, felony murder usually qualifies as a capital crime; however, there are independent constitutional limitations on the imposition of the death penalty on those guilty of felony murder.”

    Why would you volunteer to go to prison for a crime that you are not guilty of in the first place.

    A very good point, but on the other hand why should the world believe that you are innocent and yet do not give due process a chance to clear your name?

    Let’s us not forget that many in the black panther party were convicted erroneously

    Also a true comment up to a point. To my knowledge there were only a few cases where BPP members were erroneously convicted–and those I think took place in Oakland This case took place in Jersey. If I am wrong here historically, please correct me.

    Comment by Duane | December 12, 2006

  5. Taken from Hands off Assata site:

    As part of the FBI’s campaign against the Black Panther Party, Assata was labeled the “Queen of the Black Liberation Army,” and falsely accused of bank robberies and other crimes up and down in the East Coast in the early 1970s. Fleeing from these false allegations, she was captured while traveling the New Jersey Turnpike on May 2, 1973 with two other members of the Black Panther Party–Zayd Shakur and Sundiata Acoli–after their car was stopped for an alleged faulty taillight. A shoot-out erupted that resulted in deaths of Zayd and a state trooper, Werner Forster.

    Following her arrest, New Jersey State Troopers delighted in torturing Assata and, after his arrest, Sundiata, as well. While shackled and chained to a bed, arms paralyzed, and bullet wounds in her chest, Assata was beaten with shotgun butts by New Jersey State Troopers shouting Nazi slogans and threats to kill her. In the history of New Jersey, no woman pretrial detainee has ever been treated as she was, continuously confined to a men’s prison, under twenty-four surveillance of her most intimate activities, without intellectual sustenance, adequate medical attention, or exercise, and without the company of other women for all the years she was in their custody.

    Following detentions and trials riddled with egregious human rights violations and constitutional errors (e.g., massive negative publicity and exclusion of African people from the jury), Assata and Sundiata were both found guilty, in separate trials, of the murder of Trooper Weiner and sentenced to life in prison. Prior to her New Jersey trial, Assata was tried six times on the various flimsy, false charges for which she was being sought. Each time she was acquitted.

    http://www.handsoffassata.org/

    She doesn’t believe that she’ll get a fair trial. They’d placed her in male detention centers & verbally & physically tortured her for goodness sake. They also handed her to all-White juries.

    She’d beaten 6 cases of false charges on bank robberies & other crimes. The one trial that she was found guilty on has medical evidence that proves her innocence. The state of NJ knows that she’s innocent. If Trenton & DC crime labs have proof of her innocence, why wouldn’t they be in the know?

    And there are 5 proofs of evidence that vindicate her but for whatever reason, they weren’t included in this Fox piece: http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,236079,00.html

    She’s been on the run for over 20 years & now they’re placing a $1 million bounty on her head? Assata’s fugitive status is being used to deflect attention away from the Sean Bell shooting in Queens.

    Comment by Jersey Bred | December 13, 2006

  6. My debate with you on this is not merely guilt on innocence on the part of this woman. To be honest until I read your post I had not heard of her. By issue is this blind faith that you seem to have in our judicial system. And the belief that only guilty people run. And oh yeah you still didn’t tell me the felony in this case.

    Comment by Saudia | December 13, 2006

  7. By issue is this blind faith that you seem to have in our judicial system.

    Is this why you got out of law enforcement?

    I am not saying that our judicial system is always in the right, in fact you will find many cases that will show numerous mishaps in this system. But are we to judge the whole thing here based on a few problems?

    Yes I said “a few”.

    Have you ever considered the overwhelmingly amount of cases that have been tried fairly in this country. You will not find that kind of information broadcasted by these groups that hold certain inmates up as heroes. This is the equivalent of me filming only the arguments between you and your husband and telling others that you have a bad marriage.

    And oh yeah you still didn’t tell me the felony in this case.

    I provided a link to description to the case above. I even quoted part of it. I don’t know if I can make it any plainer than that.

    Comment by Duane | December 14, 2006

  8. Here is the problem with black america today.

    Culture

    black american culture is holding us back, and holding us on the bottom wrung of society.

    I started a blog today to discuss this problem and find a solution.

    holdingusback.wordpress.com

    Comment by larry | December 14, 2006

  9. Larry, “rung” not “wrung”…But I’m with you bro’

    Comment by exe | December 17, 2006

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