Community Demands Shabazz Murder Investigation

By Karin Friedemann

File:  Malcolm Shabazz

On May 9, 2013 Malcolm Shabazz, grandson of El Hajj Malik El Shabazz, aka Malcolm X, was murdered in Mexico. Since then, there has been a total media blackout, and no meaningful investigation. No public debate has occurred regarding the only male heir of the civil rights history legend, as with the murder of Trayvon Martin.

Mama Dee, a radio talk show host in New Orleans thinks African Americans should be organizing, protesting, demanding justice. “Why are we allowing our children to be killed?” she implored.

Shabazz was in Mexico City to strengthen ties between African American and Mexican activists. His host, Miguel Suarez said Shabazz was killed during a dispute over a $1200 restaurant tab in the wee hours of the morning at an establishment of ill repute. Two waiters David Hernandez Cruz and Manuel Alejandro Perez de Jesus were arrested for homicide, though five men were said to have been involved. An autopsy found that Shabazz died of blows to the head, face and torso. The men who beat Malcolm Shabazz to death not only punched and kicked him but also used a bat or stick during the attack, Mexico City’s top prosecutor Rodolfo Rios said.

Suarez said that he and Shabazz were lured to the bar by a young woman who made conversation with Shabazz in English, reported CBS. Suarez, who is still in Mexico, is not being investigated.

According to the Mexico City District Attorney’s Office, “the owners of the business committed severe irregularities, such as the alteration of video cameras and the modification of the crime scene.” The Palace Club has now been completely renovated and its name changed to La Regadera, according to an article published recently in La Jornada. “Authorities in the Cuauhtémoc District speeded up the approval of permits for the reopening of the business.”

According to Wilner Metelus of the Naturalized and Afro-Mexican Citizens Defense Committee, this is “one more proof of the corruption and complicity of the authorities with organized crime; it’s shameful and shows a lack of respect for all the citizens in the capital city and especially the Afro-Mexican community… We want to see that video. And we want a Truth Commission set up to investigate Malcolm Latif’s death, composed of both Mexican and international citizens. Those are our demands.”

Luis González Placencia, head of the city’s Human Rights Commission, refused to meet with hunger strikers demanding an investigation, who protested outside Mexico City government offices for one week. Then he sent 500 riot police to clear them out.

Sabrina Green told W.E.A.L.L.B.E. Radio that hundreds of Mexican federal police savagely beat and kicked Afro-Mexican hunger strikers who “took to the streets of Mexico City” supporting Malcolm Shabazz on July 11, 2013.” The demonstration coincided with another protest supporting Nigerian immigrant Isaac Nwachukwu, killed by Mexican police who just paid a $210 fine after being charged. Police officers ripped up photos of Shabazz and confiscated demonstrators’ signs.

There have been multiple demonstrations in front of the Mexican Embassy in DC throughout July and August. Those participating included Razakhan Shaheed of the Philadelphia Innocence Project; Pam Africa of the International Concerned Family and Friends of Mumia Abu-Jamal; Basiymah Muhammad of the World Body of the United Negro Improvement Association; Archbishop John Lewis III of the African Orthodox Church; and Dr. Randy Short of the Black Autonomy Network Organization and Chairman of Malcolm Shabazz Truth and Justice Committee.

“Both governments U.S. and Mexico are in violation of The Foreign Relations Act. Malcolm is entitled by Law to have a proper national and international assassination investigation… it’s about holding both governments to accountability. African Americans have rights! We demand Justice for Malcolm!” commented Dr. Short, who travelled with Shabazz to Libya to meet with Muammar Gadhafi one week prior to NATO intervention, as part of a delegation led by Cynthia McKinney.

Shabazz supporters are now petitioning Secretary of State John Kerry for an investigation via change.org. So far, over 3,500 signatures have been collected.

“This is a very grave matter and those of us who have signed this petition are scrutinizing the U.S. and Mexican government very closely for their lack of interest in and/or coverage of this young man’s savage torture and assassination in a foreign country. We would like the steps of Malcolm Lateef Shabazz retraced from the time that he entered Mexico. The last month of his life are of the utmost importance in getting to the bottom of how he was murdered and who actually murdered him. Considering how closely he was being watched by your government’s FBI and CIA agencies, there is no reason why they should not be able to provide this information in great detail. Unless, of course, they were complicit in young Malcolm Shabazz’s assassination,” reads the statement, filed by Rozlyn Cross-Ratliff.

Dr. Short told W.E. A.L.L. B.E. Radio, “We know the CIA did it because of premonitions he had before his death.”

Shabazz had posted on Cynthia McKinney’s Facebook page shortly before his assassination:

“The formula for a public assassination is: the character assassination before the physical assassination; so one has to be made killable before the eyes of the public in order for their eventual murder to then (be) deemed justifiable, and when the time arrives for these hits to be carried out, you’re not going to see a CIA agent with a suit & tie, and a badge that says ‘CIA’. What they will do is to out-source to local police departments in the region of their target, and to employ those that look like the target of interest to infiltrate the workings in order to set up the environment for the eventual assassination (character, physical/incarceration, exile) to take place.”

Mauri’ Saalakhan of the Peace and Justice Foundation told TMO: “Malcolm Shabazz impressed me from afar as a gifted and committed young brother with enormous potential to do great things. The fact that his life ended so soon, like that of his imminent grandfather, should give us all pause and force us to reflect over several important lessons: (1) that life and death are twin halves of each other, and none of us knows when or where the end will come; (2) those of us involved in “political” work should not only be careful of how we live our lives, but who we allow into our inner circle. I do hope… that a campaign for accountability will grow, and that a full and transparent investigation will follow.”

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