The following is a Dec. 12 statement released by the student groups that
share the Guillermo Morales/Assata Shakur Community Center at CCNY, along with a
flyer titled “The Facts Are Out, NJ Trooper Lied” with five "proofs" that Assata
Shakur is innocent:
We know that many Black people that fought for better conditions in the
70’s were framed. We consider Assata Shakur to be one of the people who were wrongfully and purposefully framed for her activities. And we consider her a hero and role model for standing up for our people and putting her life on the line. We commend City College for asserting our right to have this room and use it to serve the community in Assata and Guillermo’s name.
Read more from City College. Meanwhile, as these students of knowledge decide the law for themselves, Trooper Foerster is still dead and his family no longer knows him.
For the rest of the story including statements from police and the courts read below from 2003:
On May 2, 1973 New Jersey State Troopers James Harper and Werner Foerster were patrolling the New Jersey Turnpike in the area of East Brunswick. They stopped a car with three occupants.
The Troopers were questioning the occupants when the driver and female passenger suddenly came up with semi-automatic pistols and opened fire. Trooper Foerster was struck twice in the chest, and Trooper Harper was hit in the shoulder. The female then proceeded to take the service weapon from the injured Trooper Foerster’s. She pointed it at the wounded Trooper and shot him twice in the head, execution style. The thirty-four-year-old trooper with just three years on the road died soon after. He left a wife and family behind. Fortunately, Trooper Harper survived.The three were apprehended a short time later.
In 1977 the female shooter was convicted and sentenced to life plus 26 to 33 years in prison. She was incarcerated in the Edna Mahan Correctional Facility for Women in Hunterdon County. This facility is more commonly known today as Clinton.
On November 2, 1979 in the daylight hours this convicted murderer was serving her time in Clinton when she was taken from her cell to the visitor’s area to meet with four people who had come to see her. It was a setup. The four visitors took a Corrections Officer hostage. They then took a prison driver hostage. Using the hostages, the visitors helped her escape. She eluded capture for several years until 1986 when she made her way to Cuba. There she was granted political asylum. She has been there ever since.Today, this woman goes by the name Assata Shakur. We know her as
Joanne Chesimard.It’s been seventeen years now. Photos coming out of Cuba
show Chesimard to be a smiling, happy, fit, and seemingly well-rested tourist on
an extended vacation. Not a care in the world. In fact, she’s even written five
books which are carried by major American booksellers such as Amazon.com,
Borders, and Barnes and Noble.The good folks over at the NY Times even found their way to review her book which most definitely boosted sales. "A deftly written book... a spellbinding tale." -New York Times Book Review
On counter-culture websites she is celebrated as a revolutionary. Being the aunt of
deceased rapper Tupac Shakur has only furthered her status.Seventeen years. For seventeen years this excrement has been living on an Island in the Caribbean. Granted, Cuba might not be the first choice for retirement, but
chances are with her American fugitive status she has not been bothered too much
by the Communist Government.Several attempts have been made to diplomatically bring Joanne Chesimard back. Some of these were stagnated by our own government.
In 1998 the US House of Representatives passed a unanimous resolution urging Castro to return Chesimard to the United States. When the vote went to the floor it was worded using the name Joanne Chesimard, not Assata Shakur. After the vote, Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D) from California realized that they were one and the same. She immediately wrote a letter to Fidel Castro explaining that she was purposely duped by Republicans. She stated that had she realized that Joanne Chesimard and Assata Shakur were one and the same, she would have voted against the resolution citing her belief that Chesimard was “persecuted as a result of her political beliefs and political affiliations.” “I support the right of all nations to grant political asylum to individuals fleeing political persecution.” Excuse my
French, but what a piece of shit.Talk about sending mixed messages. It’s not certain which is scarier; the fact that a United States Congresswoman would be opposed to the extradition of someone who murdered one police officer and wounded another, or the fact that a United States Congresswoman casts her very powerful vote on issues when she is completely unaware of the facts. With this type of contradiction coming from our own government, it is no surprise that Chesimard still basks in the sun.
Chesimard will be fifty-six years old this July. It has been twenty-four years since she escaped to freedom and seventeen years since she took up new residence in Cuba. There is no investigation left to be done. She has already been convicted and
sentenced.In 2000, we went through the Elian Gonzalez fiasco. Our government
followed the law in deciding to return him to Cuba. We respect their law while
they don’t respect ours. Did our Government even try to set up a backroom deal
to have Chesimard returned? Probably not. What about our Governor, two Senators, and thirteen House Representatives? Is having Chesimard returned on the plate of
any of our elected officials?This is not just a lesson in history. Joanne Chesimard murdered a police officer. She shot and seriously wounded another. Imagine what the scene must have looked like to responding backup officers. Imagine the blood, the cries of pain, the sight of Troopers in uniform crying, the knock at the doors, the families completely losing it upon receiving the news, the chaos at the hospital, the pronouncement, the task of sitting down with the children, and later the funeral.
Joanne Chesimard needs to pay for her crimes. She needs to be brought to justice. As mentioned earlier, some attempts were made several years back, but nothing seems to be going on now. Pressure must be applied to our representatives to re-visit this issue and put it back on the front page. Our Government can work miracles when they want to. We have to make them want to. Joanne Chesimard has been free for twenty-four years. She murdered a police officer! She murdered a police officer! She murdered a police officer!
If the Government won't take action, then every local in this state should contribute monies to fund a trip to Cuba by family members and Troopers to personally meet with Fidel Castro and plead for her extradition.
Below is a link to reach the email page for the Governor. We ask that everyone reading this take the time and drop him a note expressing your outrage and your insistence that action be taken to bring Joanne Chesimard to justice. Remember too that this tragedy occurred long before Governor McGreevey was in office. His email page is a bit lengthy, but well worth the time. After all, if it was you on that motor vehicle stop back in 1973 you would want us to to do it for you and your
family.
