Shakur grew up in New York City and Wilmington, North Carolina. She became involved in political activism at Borough of Manhattan Community College and City College of New York, participating in sit-ins and civil rights protests.

After graduating from college, Shakur briefly joined the Black Panther Party, leading its Harlem chapter. She left the Panthers and joined the Black Liberation Army, a black power group that was inspired by the Viet Cong and Algerian resistance movements and waged guerrilla warfare against the U.S. government from 1970 to 1981. Shakur was one of the targets of the FBI’s COINTELPRO program.

After being involved in a shootout with New Jersey police officers, Shakur was convicted on multiple counts of assault and murder and sentenced to life in prison. In 1979, BLA members freed her in a bloodless prison escape.

Shakur successfully sought political asylum in Cuba, where she died on September 25, 2025, at the age of 78