As top 2020 Democratic presidential hopefuls prepared to take the stage this week at the 2019 We The People summit in Washington, DC, the event began with the crowd chanting words from a convicted cop-killer.
Jamal Watkins, Vice President for Civic Engagement for the NAACP, led the chant, featuring the notable words of cop-killer Assata Shakur, during opening remarks at the forum.
“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.”
Shakur is making reference to Karl Marx. Marx’s famous words were: “Let the ruling classes tremble at a Communistic revolution. The proletarians have nothing to lose but their chains. They have a world to win.”
Shakur, a former Black Panther and member of the Black Liberation Army, was convicted of the murder of a New Jersey state trooper. Shakur fled to Cuba and was granted asylum.
Shakur was put on the Most Wanted Terrorists list in 2013 by the FBI under President Barack Obama. She was the first female to ever make the list.
Declared 2020 Democrat candidates who spoke and took part in the event include Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ), former HUD Secretary Julián Castro, Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Sen. Bernie Sanders (D-VT), former Texas Rep. Beto O’Rourke, Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), and Governor Jay Inslee (D-WA).
This year’s We The People summit sponsors and organizers include Planned Parenthood, the SEIU, CPD Action, and the Sierra Club.
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