US EditionAssata Shakur, black liberation activist exiled in Cuba, dies at 78
- Assata Shakur, born Joanne Deborah Chesimard, was a Black liberation activist who passed away in Havana on Thursday, 2025, as a result of medical issues related to her age.
- Her notoriety began after a 1973 armed confrontation with New Jersey State Police officers during a traffic stop that resulted in the death of trooper Werner Foerster and led to her conviction for murder in 1977, followed by a life sentence.
- In November 1979, Shakur was freed from Clinton Correctional Facility by armed individuals affiliated with the Black Liberation Army who disguised themselves as visitors; she later reappeared in Cuba in 1984, where she received asylum from Fidel Castro.
- Shakur was placed on the FBI’s Most Wanted Terrorists list in 2013 with a $2 million reward, while she maintained in writings that she did not shoot anyone and was wounded with her hands raised.
- Her case remained a contentious issue between the U.S. and Cuba for decades, with U.S. authorities repeatedly demanding her return, but she lived out her life largely shielded from extradition.
344 Articles
344 Articles
Assata Shakur: A legacy of resistance
Workers World Party mourns the passing of the Black liberation fighter Assata Shakur, who died at the age of 78 on Sept. 25, 2025, in Havana, Cuba. To honor her memory, Workers World is reprinting an article originally entitled “Assata Shakur is a modern-day Harriet Tubman” that first appeared March
Assata Shakur: Autobiography of Liberation, Indictment of Empire
By Prince Kapone - Sep 26, 2025 A 21-Gun Salute to a Revolutionary Who Died Free and Unbroken Assata in the Crosshairs They called her a fugitive, a terrorist, a threat to the republic. The newspapers splashed her face across their pages like a wanted poster, as if she were a bandit who had robb
Media Fawns Over Death of Cop Killer Assata Shakur
Assata Shakur was convicted in 1977 of the first-degree murder of New Jersey state trooper Werner Foerster. After escaping from prison in 1979, she became the first woman to land on the FBI's most wanted terrorist list. Shakur was part of a previous wave of radical left-wing violence. She was a member of the Black Liberation Army (BLA), a Marxist militant group devoted to
A Definitive Guide to Media Coverage of Cop Killer Assata Shakur’s Death
Assata Shakur was convicted in 1977 of the first-degree murder of New Jersey state trooper Werner Foerster. After escaping from prison in 1979, she became the first woman to land on the FBI’s most wanted terrorist list. Shakur was part of a previous wave of radical left-wing violence. She was a member of the Black Liberation Army (BLA), a Marxist militant group devoted to "killing cops" and seizing "control of their communities," according to th…
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