Afeni Shakur

Shakur was born Alice Faye Williams on January 10, 1947, in Lumberton, North Carolina.[2] She had a sister, Gloria Jean.[4] She had a troubled beginning and grew up resenting her father because he was abusive. When she, her mother, and her sister left her father in 1958, they moved to the Bronx. She tested into and was accepted at the elite Bronx High School of Science.

In 1968 she joined the Harlem Black Panther Party and changed her name to Afeni Shakur.[5][6] She became a section leader of the Harlem chapter[5] and a mentor to new members such as Jamal Joseph.[6] She also worked with Billy Garland (Tupac's biological father) and Geronimo Pratt (who became Tupac's baptismal sponsor).[7]

After Afeni Shakur was acquitted of her charges, she did not return to the Black Panther Party. In 1975, she married Mutulu Shakur and had their daughter, Sekyiwa. They got divorced in 1982. She and her children moved to Baltimore, Maryland in 1984. She raised her children through welfare because she could not keep a job.[11] She relocated to Marin County in California to manage her drug use.[11] In 1989, her son left home because of her. The two later reconciled.[12] She overcame her addiction after she moved back to New York in 1991 and started Narcotics Anonymous meetings.[13]

In 2004, Afeni Shakur married Gust Davis Jr. In that same year, her biography, Afeni Shakur: Evolution of a Revolutionary was released.[8] In her biography, Afeni Shakur reflected in her childhood experiences and her upbringing as well as her involvement in the Black Panther Party. In the book, she stated that the party educated and directed her to channel her anger.[1] This gave her hope which she mentioned she had never experienced.[1] She spoke about how she met men who did not abuse black women in the party. It was through the party that she met Lumumba Shakur, agreed to be his second wife and converted to Islam.[8] She described her experiences in jail and how together with other inmates, they organized a bail fund to get some of the women out of jail.[8]

Although Tupac struggled in his relationship with his mother, he paid tribute to her in his song "Dear Mama".[12] In the song, he reflects on his childhood, acknowledges Afeni's troubles with addiction, and expresses his love for her:

"You always was committed, A poor single mother on welfare, tell me how you did it. There's no way I can pay you back, But the plan is to show you that I understand: you are appreciated."[14]

Her revolutionary ideas were reflected in Tupac's music.[15] Before Tupac died, he arranged for her to receive $16,000 monthly and purchased a home for her in Stone Mountain, Georgia. She was the co-executor of Tupac's estate.[11]

Exactly one year after her son's death, with revenue from his albums released posthumously, Afeni Shakur founded the Georgia-based Tupac Amaru Shakur Foundation to provide art programs for young people and Amaru Entertainment, a holding company for all of Tupac's unreleased material. She was a comfort to many grieving mothers after the death of her son Tupac and traveled across America giving speeches at events. The foundation was sold shortly before her death.[16] She also launched a fashion clothing line, Makaveli Branded. Afeni Shakur was not involved in the production of All Eyez on Me, a film based on Tupac's life, stating she felt betrayed by her lawyer, who made the deal with the production company Morgan Creek against her wishes. When she learned of the deal, she fired her lawyer, hired new ones, and fought against the contract and production company. She went to court several times, spending millions of dollars, which she stated led to her selling the Tupac Amaru Shakur Center for the Arts, eventually settling for an undisclosed amount of money.[15]

Shakur died at a hospital in Greenbrae, California, at around 10:28 p.m. on May 2, 2016, after going into cardiac arrest at her home earlier in the evening; she was 69.[20][11][21][15] Her body was cremated.[22]

• Assata Shakur
• Mopreme Shakur

• Afeni Shakur at IMDb