Episode 54: Sekou Odinga On Political Prisoners, The Black Panthers And The Black Liberation Army

In this episode we are honored to interview Sekou Odinga. Odinga is a former member of Malcolm X’s Organization of Afro-American Unity, a founding member of New York Chapter of the Black Panther Party and one of the falsely charged New York Panther 21. He was also a founding member of the International Black Panther Party chapter which set up an embassy in Algeria.

After returning to the US, Odinga joined the Black Liberation Army. In 1984 he was convicted of multiple charges, including the liberation of Assata Shakur. While he contested the charge legally, after serving almost 34 years for the conviction, he has acknowledged that he is honored to be connected with the Assata’s liberation.

Sekou Odinga shares reflections, memories and lessons from the struggles of his era. He also joins us specifically to highlight the need to bring home political prisoners. The political prisoners from his generation are all elders, many of them with compromised immune systems, who have all served decades in prison for their political activity.