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The Exile Of Assata Shakur: Marronage And American Borders, Joe Kaplan
The Exile Of Assata Shakur: Marronage And American Borders, Joe Kaplan
History Theses
Former Black Panther, Assata Shakur, now living in exile in Cuba after breaking out of a U.S. prison, is a self-described escaped slave, or maroon. Shakur has adopted this identity to underscore how practices and ideologies developed under slavery continue to structure Black life in the Americas, and how resistance strategies produced by this historical milieu remain salient in critiques of modern U.S. state power. The transnational nature of Shakur’s flight points to the use of borders as a highly effective, yet overlooked, tactic of Black resistance that has both historical and contemporary relevance. For maroons, borders mark hard distinctions …
From Cuba To Ferguson: A Reflection On Memory As Bridge Across Communities Of Struggle, Joe Kaplan
From Cuba To Ferguson: A Reflection On Memory As Bridge Across Communities Of Struggle, Joe Kaplan
Race and Pedagogy Journal: Teaching and Learning for Justice
I wrote this piece spontaneously as I reflected on the anniversary of Ferguson while working on my summer research project on former Black Panther and current political exile, Assata Shakur. I wanted to stress the role that memory plays in the creation of communities, whether nationally imagined, or based around a shared sense of justice. Shakur's asylum status in Cuba should serve as a reminder to all advocates of social justice in the U.S. that transnational communities of struggle can serve a vital function in redressing domestic racial injustice. I go on to make the recommendation that contemporary activists harness …