Political Views of Asata Shakur and Black Nationalists - Essay Example

Assata Shakur Assata Shakur is an American activist who was born in 1947 and was a member of Black Panther Party. In the year 1971, she was accused of several crimes ranging from murder to the bank robbery. Even though she was jailed, she managed to escape and has been living in Cuba since then (Roman and Littlefield 16). The main objective of this essay is to compare and contrast the political views of Assata Shakur with the writings of black nationalists; Martin L. King and Marcus Garvey. Also, compare and contrast her with Betty Friedan and Gloria Steinem, who are radical feminist. Finally, the article will explain how incarceration shaped her political visions and the differences and similarities of the person today and those experienced by Shakur in 1990’s. Comparison and contrast in political views with the black nationalists. Formerly, Joanne Deborah Chesimard, Assata Shakur managed to gain a very mythical status in the eyes of most of the observers. To her supporters she stood out as a much-focused woman with visions, action and courage who never got to receive any justice (Shakur 247 (b)). To the U.S. Federal Bureau of Justice, on the other hand, as a leader of the considered the most violent militant organization of the blacks in the 1970s. In her description, she is a black revolutionary, just like the other fighters for the civil rights of the blacks such as Martin Luther King, Malcolm X and Marcus Garvey. It is on this ground that an analysis of the similarities and differences between the political views of Shakur and two other black nationalists: Martin Luther King and Marcus Garvey, is carried out. One very significant and the most outstanding similar ideology, which may be said to cut across all the black nationalists is the failure to reject armed struggle. Especially, as a means of attaining freedom and abolishment of the very unfair racial segregation laws that were imposed by the then existent governments (Roman and Littlefield 24). All the leaders have the same mission of establishing equality and peace. Just as Shakur strived to see to it that the equality laws are effectively and equally enforced on each and every individual. King relentlessly pursued the putting to end by the Supreme Court the laws of segregation, and that they are just to all. Marcus Garvey, similarly, fought for the same equality demanded by blacks all over the world. Even though the situations of the various nationalists may have been different, they all tried to establish peace and equality. For instance, Martin Luther king insisted on the need for peaceful negotiations without armament, which was not the case of Marcus Garvey and Shakur respectively. For Shakur, the community remains very central, even during the very extremely violent upheavals, which is the same case as that of Marcus. Marcus was raised among the whites and only gets to learn of the racial segregation at the age of fourteen. He gladly accepts to live among the poor and identify with them as a means of holding together the spirit of brotherhood. All the three revolutionists have come out and were willing to die for the people if that is what it meant. Eventually, Shakur is forced to seek political asylum in Cuba, Marcus and King are, on the other hand, assassinated. Unlike the others, she refuses to make revolutionary war standout synonymously with violence; instead, she mentions a people’s war, which preludes the elite vanguards (Shakur 248 (b)). This ideology links closely to that of Martin Luther King, whereby he insists on the need for non-violent resistance. His primary aim was to develop means of negotiating the unjust laws that lead to the massive segregation of the Americans. As posted by Haugen (110), Marcus also maintained that the religion could foster the bond that held the blacks together. Though struggling for the same course, there are still differences in the manner in which the various leaders argued. Whereas the key arguments of King are addressed against oppression and racism that significantly affected the African-Americans, Shakur, being a female revolutionist at a time of struggle for equality, particularly addressed the need for the women to also be recognized amongst the nationalists (Stein 1050). Through the Black Panther Party, she managed to champion for the need to recognize the women revolutionists, not merely as partners or lovers of the male revolutionists, but as humans who stood up for their rights. Marcus, on the other hand, was mainly concerned with the need to unite and educate all the blacks, in order to create a strong economy upon which all the blacks could effectively rely on besides the promotion of Christianity amongst the blacks (Stein 1048). To sum it up, in spite of the differences in the various ways in which the black nationalists operated, there was very little difference in the ideologies held by them, importance of the community, the need for struggle for fair laws without violence and the need to always maintain peace. Comparison and contrast with other radical feminists. Radical feminism is a social dominance philosophy in emphasizing patriarchal ways of inequality between the two sexes as it greatly views its privileges, power possessed by a given gender as well as dividing rights in the view of oppressing women and the other hand privileging men. Assata Shakur was one the radicals in the United States of America between the years 1970s t0 1980s before her exile to Cuba. She revolutionized movement of student organizations in schools to contest for the equality as well as in the political arena through her participation in Black Panthers (Roman and Littlefield 30). In her legislative review, she faced political repressions and racism since the existed governments persecuted these aspects. The liberation for black movement as well as students’ rights movement in the case of Assata Shakur led to the realization of the rights of the blacks even though in return she became the most wanted by the government. This tireless fight for other people is compared with other radical feminism like Betty Friedan, a journalist and activist who fought for the women rights to bring a force for the change as she greatly stereotyped the confining of gender in the United States in the year1966. Alongside this, she also fought for the rights of abortion to the extent of creating an abortion law (Roman and Littlefield 45). In terms of contrast, Betty Friedan was more of a writer, and her work is widely published in her books and did not face any convictions as compared to her counterpart Shakur. In the end, she later succumbs to heart failure whereas Shakur went in exile. Another radical feminist was Gloria Steinem, who was a spokeswoman in her writings in New York columnist and lectures in making women visible and powerful in media platform. Her political dispensation was outlaid when she led a protest against tax payment refusal in the Vietnam War. She also campaigned in the amendment of Equal Rights so as to bring more women to power and her justification was heard by the Senate of Judiciary committee. She later got arrested as compared to her counterpart Shakur while she was protesting against the apartheid system in South Africa. In contrast to her other feminists, she has been in the forefronts in political campaigns from McGovern to presidential candidates like Bush, McCain and Obama in ensuring important aspects are to be considered in their manifesto and to fight for issues like abortion, mutilations and even homosexuals. She ends up obtaining several awards and honors from her career. The Incarceration of Assata Shakur Assata Shakur was jailed in the New Jersey State Reception and Correction Centre in Yardville Burlington County in New Jersey after the shootings at Turnpike, but she was later on transferred to Rikers Island Correctional Institution for Women in New York and kept in solitary confinement for a period of 21 months. She conceived her only daughter Kakuya Shakur during the trials and gave birth to her on 11th September 1974 at Elmhurst General Hospital in Queens in the “fortified psychiatric wards”. She had spent a few days in the hospital before she was returned to Rikers Island. (Roman and Littlefield 15) Shakur claims in her autobiography that she was restrained and beaten by a number of huge female offices when she refused to be examined by a prison doctor just a short while after Kakuya’s delivery. In prison, she filed a suit related to the state of her confinement, but was never successful in convincing the federal courts to order the paralegals aiding in her claim be given attorney like visitation rights. On the 8th of April 1978, Shakur was moved to Alderson Federal Prison Camp in Alderson in West Virginia where she had an encounter with Mary Alice, a nun, who introduced to her the idea of Liberation Theology and Puerto Rican nationalist Lolita Lebron. Here she was confined in the Maximum Security Section with members of the Aryan Sisterhood. She was later on transferred to Clinton Correctional Facility for Women in New Jersey after the closure of the Maximum Security Unit at Alderson. She got subjected to very awful conditions these being confinement in males prison, 24 hour surveillance including her most intimate functions, without any intellectual attendance, inadequate medical attention, lack of exercise and company for the duration she was in custody (Shakur 19(a)) Before her escape on the 2nd of November 1979, she had gone through a series of very tough experiences that incredibly strengthened her conviction that racism was indeed a menace in the US. She was subjected to brutality while in custody which included gross searches of her private parts. The manner of her conviction too with regard to her physical state at the time was very cruel that at the end she lamented that it was a total waste of time on her part to have complied with the proceedings. She was now all the more resolved to fight to her final breath the existence of racism. Her encounter too with Mary Alice, the nun who introduced to her the concept of Liberation Theology together with the Puerto Rican nationalist Lolita Lebron and the members of the Aryan Sisterhood at Alderson Maximum Prison Unit served to tighten her grip onto her cause as she knew she was not alone in the fight for freedom (Shakur 34 (a)). The conditions that faced inmates that are similar to those that do exist today include the harassment of convicts which may entail thrashing or some form of torture by the prison guards, 24 hour surveillance and inadequate medical attention. However improvements have been introduced say for instance, prisoners have intellectual attendance, are allowed time to do some physical exercises and are also allowed to relate to one another while in prison. Works cited Haugen Brenda. Marcus Garvey: Black Nationalist Crusader and Entrepreneur. Minneapolis, Minn.: Compass Point Books, 2008. Pages 107-112. Print. Lee A Jacobs. “A World of Ideas Essential Reading for College Writers.” Boston, New York: Bedford/St. Martins, University of Connecticut, 2010. Pages 213-229. Print. Roman and Littlefield. Let nobody Turn us around, 2 Ed .New York: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers. 2009. Print Shakur Assata: An Autobiography: Lawrence Hill Books, 1987 b. Pages 245-9 Shakur, Assata. Assata: An Autobiography. Chicago: Lawrence Hill Books. 1999 a. Print. Stein Judith. The world of Marcus Garvey: Race and Class in modern society. Baton Rouge: Louisiana State UP, 1986, pages 1043-51 Read More