Wisdom of Sister Shakur

[RWalker]

Sister Assata Shakur:

“My life wasn’t beautiful and creative before I became politically active. My life was totally changed when I began to struggle. We had to learn that we’re beautiful. We had to relearn something that was forcefully taken away from us. We had to learn about Black Power. People have power if we unite. We learned the importance of coming together and being creative. That fueled me.”

“We were not prepared for what we experienced in the 60’s. Black people need to know what happened and what the role of the government was. It wasn’t just a matter of the Black Panther Party disappearing, it was destroyed, it was attacked by the government, it was divided, it. It was destroyed. We need to study that time so we don’t make the same mistakes.”


“We knew what a token was then. Today young people don’t see Condoleezza Rice or Colin Powell as tokens. That’s a problem.”

“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 am part of a majority not a minority. My life has been a life of growth. If your not growing, you’re not going to understand real love. If your not reaching out to help others then you’re sinking. My life has been active. I’m not a spectator. I think the greatest betrayal a revolutionary can participate in is to become like your oppressors. I think that is a betrayal and a sin."

“I think the one problem that exist in the U.S. and many other places in the world is that people don’t believe that they can make a difference. So a lot of times we’re defeated before we even start. We’ve become consumer’s of a world vision, of Kentucky Fried Chicken, of McDonald’s…and we’ve also consumed the idea of powerlessness, of the idea that 'you can’t fight city hall', 'you can’t win against a powerful establishment' of 'you can’t change things, the government is strong, that’s just the way things are'”.

“I think the movement has done more for me as a human being than I will ever be able to do for the movement. I felt that what happened in the 60’s with the Black Liberation movement can be useful today because in many situations it’s bad or even worse. We are oppressed people in the U.S. and don’t even know it. We have fewer opportunities to be doctors and lawyers as tuition increases. Our problem is that we want to belong to a society that wants to oppress us. We want to be the plantation owner. In Cuba, we want to change the plantation into a collective farm. What I’m dealing with is difficult. Our people, not just black people, people all over the world has dealt with oppression and are dealing with it and are struggling and that you know ... either we want a better world or we don’t, and either we gon’ fight for it, struggle for it, work for it or we aint! But I think it’s worth it, I think it’s worth it!"