ARIZONA

Democrats in Arizona Senate quote woman who murdered officer in statement on police brutality

Maria Polletta
Arizona Republic

Arizona Senate Democrats retracted part of a press statement condemning police brutality Friday, after the inclusion of a quote from a fugitive convicted of murdering a New Jersey state trooper stirred backlash.

The caucus had issued the statement earlier Friday, hours after protesters gathered in downtown Phoenix to denounce the actions of officers involved in the death of Minnesota man George Floyd while in Minneapolis police custody.

It cited "deep anger and frustration in our country centered around the systemic and deliberate murder of Black Americans" and said honoring Floyd's memory meant "seeking true justice and fighting for solutions to address and end the systemic racism in our communities and our country."

The statement concluded with a quote from Assata Shakur: "It is our duty to fight for our freedom. It is our duty to win. We must love each other and support each other. We have nothing to lose but our chains.’”

Republican lawmakers and consultants seized on Shakur's inclusion on social media, calling it "highly offensive."

"I don’t know a soul who believes the killing of George Floyd was anything other than reprehensible and unwarranted," Rep. T.J. Shope, R-Coolidge, said in a tweet.

"But for the AZ Senate Democrats to quote a cop-killer on the FBI Most Wanted Terrorist List in a press release is truly mind-blowing."

Who is Assata Shakur?

The FBI added Shakur, previously known as JoAnne Chesimard, to the Most Wanted list in 2013, decades after she carried out robberies, bombings and prison breaks as part of the Black Liberation Army. 

Joanne Chesimard - fugitve convicted felon in the murder of NJ State Trooper Werner Foerster on May 2, 1973.

Peniel Joseph, a history professor at Tufts University, has described Shakur as one of the era's “self-styled revolutionaries who committed acts of violence that they defined as revolutionary, inspired by guerrilla revolts."

She was sentenced to life in prison after being convicted of first-degree murder in the 1973 shooting of a New Jersey state trooper, though she maintained her innocence. In 1979, she escaped from prison with the help of three armed men who held two correctional officers hostage and commandeered a prison van, according to news reports from that year.

She resurfaced in Cuba in 1984. Authorities charged her with unlawful flight to avoid confinement.

In 1998, Shakur wrote that she continued to support "revolutionary changes in the structure and in the principles that govern the United States." The quote cited by Senate Democrats has previously been used as a chant at protests of police brutality. 

'Not intended as an endorsement'

Senate Democrats indicated they were not aware of Shakur's "past criminal conviction and current status" until after they issued the statement, which they later pulled from Twitter.

They said they knew of the quote through its use "in social justice and activism circles." 

"The use of the quote was not intended as an endorsement, but to emphasize issues of social justice," the caucus said. "We regret the inclusion of the quote, but stand by the rest of the statement."

Senate Democrats went on to say they remained "focused on the murder of Black Americans and finding solutions to address systemic racism in this country."

That explanation fell short for some of their colleagues and constituents, however.

"I find it hard to buy Senate Dems didn’t know they were quoting a convicted cop killer who, in their own words, is a 'well-known commentator,'" Rep. Bret Roberts, R-Maricopa, said on Twitter.

"But glad they’ve realized that promoting fugitive murderers is a bad idea."

Reach the reporter at maria.polletta@arizonarepublic.com or 602-653-6807. Follow her on Twitter @mpolletta.

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