53 Search results for "political prisoners"

In the wake of her addition to the FBI’s Most Wanted Terrorist List, Assata Shakur has released an open letter. “All I have is my voice, my spirit and the will to tell the truth. But I sincerely ask, those of you in the Black media, those of you in the progressive media, those of you who believe in truth freedom, To publish this statement and to let people know what is happening.”

Members of Congress are calling for an investigation into Jay-Z and Beyonce’s recent, widely-publicized trip to Cuba. Jay and Bey are alleged to have not gotten the proper clearance for the trip, and could face a substantial fine?

 Charles X. Cook (far left) receiving an award from the African-American Leadership Association A few months ago, I interviewed Charles X. Cook, owner of One on One Personal Fitness, for the  GAME CHANGERS PROJECT. Charles tells the story of how he went from a highly recruited High School basketball player, to drug dealer, to federal […]

Dedicated to Lakeesha Malone and Kim Jackson This past Sunday Dr. Dre and Snoop Doog achieved an impossible: they brought Tupac Shakur back to life! Using hologram technology, the musicians have awakened a level of consciousness that many would argue died with Tupac. However, the performance at Coachella 2012 is not merely an extension of […]

The controversy surrounding the trial and conviction of activist, journalist and former Black Panther Party member Mumia Abu-Jamal is known the world over. Since his conviction, Mumia Abu-Jamal has been a rallying point for activists who decry the seeming injustices swirling around his trial and conviction. The decades long debate over his guilt or innocence […]

I got the opportunity to visit Robben Island. This is the location that Nelson Mandela was jailed at for 27 years of his life. It still amazes me the sacrifices given by activists in the name of freedom and equality. I am only 20 years old, meaning he was in jail for a longer amount […]

When Drum Gang Productions sent me this beat I was immediately blown away by it’s intensity. Of course, I felt it was perfect for me, and the type of music I make, but still I was unsure how I should approach it. I knew it was special and I didn’t want to waste it. Originally […]

December 4th 1969. Officers raided Fred Hampton’s apartment, where he lay asleep (perhaps even drugged) in bed next to his pregnant girlfriend. All because of what he wanted and what he believed. Long before Fred Hampton’s meteoric rise, the Black Panther Party for Self-Defense was the target of a well executed smear campaign led by […]

I didn’t see “For Colored Girls” this weekend. I had every intention of doing so. I wanted to have an opinion. I wanted to join in on the inevitable conversation that I knew would occur around the preview. I really, really wanted to. But I couldn’t bring myself to do it. Instead, I chose to […]

The man grabs her arm tightly and presses her against the gate, and in someone’s fantasy this, without context, might have been erotic. I want it to be—for her sake, I’d say if you asked—but I also want it for mine. I do not want to personally get involved in a violent dispute between strangers, […]

Editor’s Note: This month at BYP, we will be exploring Black Liberation & Organizing, and we are interested in publishing works that address these topics. How do we hold politicians accountable to Black communities? Is that even possible? What should be our role in the electoral politics? What does abolition look like in practice? What […]

I say a lot of shit. Before COVID, before my mother-in-law relapsed, before my brother announced his secret baby and before the fall out, before my god sister’s cancer diagnosis, I said that if one more traumatic event happened to me after my mother’s own cancer became untreatable earlier this year, I would fall apart. […]