RIP Afeni Shakur

RIP Afeni Shakur. Met her once and she was every bit as fierce as Tupac. She told a room full of activists that if they didn't find God and use God's love in their work, that they would destroy themselves. She said she saw the Panthers destroy themselves and each other because they didn't work for a love greater than ideology. The room was unreceptive, except for the youth. The teen organizers in the room literally ran up to her like she was a superstar as soon as she got off the stage to lukewarm applause from the adult activists. Van Jones, who was the convener of the event, came on after her and stood up for her truth, reinforcing her by pausing the event until she got a proper show of appreciation from the audience. I walked up to her in the hallway as she was hugging a circle of five or six teens like they were her own children. I said "thank you for Tupac and thank you for telling these fools what they need to hear." She just smiled and gave me a hug. A powerful, wise, warm woman. Tupac's mama.