Reading the Classics: Assata: An Autobiography by Assata Shakur

Kicking off season four is Assata Shakur’s autobiography, Assata. We finalized the books and schedule for our new season in September before the passing of Assata Shakur; however, we will move forward as planned, as we feel strongly that people need to know who she was and so we hope that you’ll join us on Saturday, November 15 at 5pm.

About the book:

On May 2, 1973, Black Panther Assata Shakur (aka JoAnne Chesimard) lay in a hospital, close to death, handcuffed to her bed, while local, state, and federal police attempted to question her about the shootout on the New Jersey Turnpike that had claimed the life of a white state trooper. Long a target of J. Edgar Hoover's campaign to defame, infiltrate, and criminalize Black nationalist organizations and their leaders, Shakur was incarcerated for four years prior to her conviction on flimsy evidence in 1977 as an accomplice to M**der.

This intensely personal and political autobiography belies the fearsome image of JoAnne Chesimard long projected by the media and the state. With wit and candor, Assata Shakur recounts the experiences that led her to a life of activism and portrays the strengths, weaknesses, and eventual demise of Black and White revolutionary groups at the hand of government officials. The result is a signal contribution to the literature about growing up Black in America that has already taken its place alongside The Autobiography of Malcolm X and the works of Maya Angelou. Two years after her conviction, Assata Shakur escaped from Pr*son. She was given political asylum by Cuba, where she lived until her recent death.

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