The Women's March defended its decision to honor a convicted cop killer's birthday on the group's official Twitter account, sending out a 20-tweet chain Monday night.
On Sunday, the Women's March celebrated the 70th birthday of Assata Shakur, calling her a "revolutionary" and writing that its "resistance" today is in honor of her.
Happy birthday to the revolutionary #AssataShakur! Today's #SignOfResistance, in Assata's honor, is by @Meloniousfunk. pic.twitter.com/V66au1dRnl
— Women's March (@womensmarch) July 16, 2017
Shakur was convicted in 1977 for the murder of a New Jersey police officer, the assault of another, and bank robbery as part of the Black Liberation Army. In 1979, she escaped prison and fled to communist Cuba. She remains on the FBI's "Most Wanted Terrorist" list to this day.
Despite receiving criticism for its praise of Shakur, the Women's March doubled down, devoting 20 tweets to explaining why it is OK to admire the wanted terrorist and calling its critics "far right."
Women's March is a nonviolent movement. We have never and will never use violence to achieve our goals. (1/20)
— Women's March (@womensmarch) July 17, 2017
The far right is threatened by our movement, and by our solidarity with other movements. (2/20)
— Women's March (@womensmarch) July 17, 2017
Our power—your power—scares the far right. They continue to try to divide us. Today's attacks on #AssataShakur are the latest example (3/20)
— Women's March (@womensmarch) July 17, 2017
Here is a brief refresher on who #AssataShakur is and why we consider her a feminist figure: (4/20)
— Women's March (@womensmarch) July 17, 2017
#AssataShakur is a civil rights leader who used her leadership position to challenge sexism within the Black Liberation Movement. (5/20)
— Women's March (@womensmarch) July 17, 2017
#AssataShakur's resistance tactics were different from ours. That does not mean that we do not respect her anti-sexism work. (6/20)
— Women's March (@womensmarch) July 17, 2017
#AssataShakur took a militant approach. We do not. That does not mean we don't respect and appreciate her anti-racism work. (7/20)
— Women's March (@womensmarch) July 17, 2017
Like many activists during the 60s and 70s, #AssataShakur was under constant FBI surveillance through a program called COINTELPRO. (8/20)
— Women's March (@womensmarch) July 17, 2017
Via @ACLU: COINTELPRO was "an effort to suppress domestic political dissent through an array of illegal activities." (9/20)
— Women's March (@womensmarch) July 17, 2017
Via @ACLU: COINTELPRO was "an effort to suppress domestic political dissent through an array of illegal activities." (9/20)
— Women's March (@womensmarch) July 17, 2017
COINTELPRO used illegal techniques to monitor & discredit civil rights groups and even kill civil rights leaders like Fred Hampton. (10/20)
— Women's March (@womensmarch) July 17, 2017
COINTELPRO targeted MLK until his assassination. Once he was killed & no longer a threat to FBI, they went after the Black Panthers. (11/20)
— Women's March (@womensmarch) July 17, 2017
COINTELPRO repeatedly tried to imprison Assata, attempting to link her to every east coast bank robbery involving a Black woman. (12/20)
— Women's March (@womensmarch) July 17, 2017
This is the terrifying climate #AssataShakur's resistance work took place in—when the govt was killing her friends and colleagues. (13/20)
— Women's March (@womensmarch) July 17, 2017
In 1973, #AssataShakur was involved in a shoot-out in which she was wounded & a NJ State Trooper & several of her colleagues killed. (14/20)
— Women's March (@womensmarch) July 17, 2017
Assata was arrested, tortured and charged for the death of the State Trooper. As further punishment, she was held in a men's prison. (15/20)
— Women's March (@womensmarch) July 17, 2017
We see the decision to place Assata in a men's prison as state-sponsored sexual assault—using rape as legal punishment for a crime. (16/20)
— Women's March (@womensmarch) July 17, 2017
After two years, #AssataShakur escaped from prison. She has been living with political asylum in Cuba ever since. (17/20)
— Women's March (@womensmarch) July 17, 2017
In 2013, #AssataShakur became the first woman added to the FBI Most Wanted Terrorists list. She'd been implicated in no new crimes. (18/20)
— Women's March (@womensmarch) July 17, 2017
We say all this not to say that #AssataShakur has never committed a crime, and not to endorse all of her actions. (19/20)
— Women's March (@womensmarch) July 17, 2017
We say this to demonstrate the ongoing history of government & right-wing attempts to criminalize and discredit political activists. (20/20)
— Women's March (@womensmarch) July 17, 2017
Needless to say, the March's critics were not impressed with the group's defense.
19. The woman is a criminal.
20. The crazies are trying to criminalize her. pic.twitter.com/AE61eT77wL— Charles C. W. Cooke (@charlescwcooke) July 17, 2017
You are garbage, and you just tweeted happy birthday to a terrorist cop-killer. https://t.co/6YFH5rYfdO
— Ben Shapiro (@benshapiro) July 17, 2017
.@womensmarch is a bunch of murdering terrorist enabling liars. This entire thread is sickening. https://t.co/NClwZPsMuE
— John Cardillo (@johncardillo) July 18, 2017
"Josef Mengele had some offbeat ideas about medical research, but that does not mean we do not respect his expertise as a doctor." https://t.co/g91kV6JX3Z
— Mark Hemingway (@Heminator) July 18, 2017
"The Unabomber's resistance tactics were different from ours. That does not mean that we do not respect his sustainability work." https://t.co/WekCVk2eXh
— Ian Tuttle (@iptuttle) July 17, 2017
Dear #WomensMarch: Intersectionality has driven u crazy. #AssataShakur executed NJ state trooper. She is on FBI most-wanted terrorist list. https://t.co/9mtKvkCMAp
— Christina Sommers (@CHSommers) July 18, 2017