Exclusive!! Mother of Slain Rapper Slim Dunkin Makes Appeal to Her Son’s Killer (video & photos)

December 24, 2011

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HHE_7430 — Program of Mario Denzel Hamilton

The mother of slain Mario Denzel Hamilton aka Slim Dunkin made a shocking appeal to her son’s killer moments after laying him to rest. Hip Hop Enquirer’s Dennis Byron was at the burial when Janet Hamilton decided to speak out. Her words speak volumes as someone who has lost her oldest son. We are also sharing scenes from inside the church as we were the only one allowed media access to cover it. Hip Hop didn’t kill Slim Dunkin…a killer did.There were many friends, family and celebrities who attended the homecoming for Mr. Hamilton that included rapper Gucci Mane, rapper Yung Chris, Travis Porter, and other notable attendees. One of the most moving moments was when a white horse drawn carriage entered into his neighborhood in Clayton County only to be greeted by hundreds of people.

There is nothing sadder than to have to witness a parent burying a child who she believed would be a part of her life for many years to come. While my job was to cover this news story, I couldn’t be more disgusted at the fact how so many of our young people are losing their lives over the most ridiculous things. There is no justification that would have warranted this man to have lost his life even if it was a result of one person losing a fight to another.

A weapon should only be used in the fair defense of oneself against another who is bringing that equal amount of danger to the person and when there is no way to retreat to safety. In this case, one person may have felt that his manhood was put on the line and may have acted out in fear and foolishness but at the end of the day, a life was senselessly taken and as a result two families will have to suffer from it. To all of you who are reading this right now, please don’t be tricked or fooled into believing that taken a life is justified just because someone said the wrong thing to you. Prisons are filled with people who acted out of haste and chances are will never see the free world again. Ask yourself…is it really worth it?

If you are a member of the media and would like to obtain an excerpt of the videos or photos, please send request to info@hiphopenquirer.com

Assata Shakur: From Fugitive to Freedom Fighter — Why the Culture Still Celebrates Her

Words by Dennis Byron

Kash Patel, I hear you. You wear the title of FBI Director today, but let’s be real—you weren’t even around when Assata Shakur’s name shook the system. You didn’t live through the era when the government put a bullseye on Black revolutionaries, when “justice” was too often just another word for oppression. I did. I remember it in real time. And I know the difference between a freedom fighter and a terrorist.

If America wants to have a serious conversation about domestic terror, let’s start with Timothy McVeigh and Terry Nichols blowing up federal buildings. Let’s talk Dylann Roof walking into a Black church and spraying bullets. Let’s talk George Zimmerman stalking Trayvon Martin, David Berkowitz terrorizing New York as the “Son of Sam,” or any number of men whose names will forever be synonymous with true terror. Don’t you dare put Assata Shakur in that same sentence.

A Panther With Purpose

Before the wanted posters and FBI most-wanted lists, Assata was JoAnne Chesimard—a young sister from Queens who stepped into the storm of the civil rights era. She joined the Black Panther Party and later the Black Liberation Army, not because it was trendy, but because it was survival.

She fed hungry kids when the government wouldn’t. She set up health clinics in communities the state ignored. She gave political education to the people so they could understand the systems stacked against them. That’s not terrorism—that’s love for your people in action.

The Case That Never Added Up

Fast-forward to 1973, a New Jersey turnpike, and a deadly shootout. A state trooper lost his life, and Assata was arrested, shot, and thrown into the legal grinder. By 1977, she was convicted, but ask anyone who truly studied the case—there were holes big enough to drive a truck through.

Assata Shakur and her daughter Kakuya in Cuba – photo via healer Ola Ronke

Jury bias. Coerced testimony. A courtroom atmosphere dripping with racism. It wasn’t just a trial—it was a setup. Human rights groups worldwide have said it loud: Assata didn’t get justice, she got railroaded.

So when she broke out of prison in 1979 and later landed in Cuba, it wasn’t about running—it was about surviving. And Cuba called it like it was: political asylum for a political prisoner.

The Voice That Won’t Die

Exile didn’t silence her. In 1987 she dropped Assata: An Autobiography—part testimony, part revolutionary gospel. Decades later, it’s still studied in classrooms, still quoted in movements, still moving people who see themselves in her story.

Hip hop never forgot either. Common immortalized her in “A Song for Assata.” Tupac—her godson—carried her influence in his bloodline. Her name gets invoked because she embodies that fight-back spirit that hip hop at its core represents.

Who’s the Real Terrorist?

The FBI slaps her on its “Most Wanted Terrorists” list, but let’s keep it a buck: the word “terrorist” loses its meaning when it’s used as a weapon against someone who uplifted her community.

Real terror was Oklahoma City. Real terror was Charleston. Real terror was Trayvon’s killer walking free. When we talk terrorism, those are the names that belong in bold print.

Assata Shakur? She’s a survivor. A symbol. A reminder that you can cage the body but not the spirit. And whether America likes it or not, she will be celebrated—not as a villain, but as a revolutionary who refused to bow down.

Because in the culture, we don’t just remember history—we correct it.

During her 1976 trial, Assata Shakur testified that she had raised her hands when state troopers stopped her vehicle, yet she was shot in the shoulder and back. A medical expert confirmed her injuries were consistent with this account. Despite the evidence, an all-white jury convicted her of first-degree murder in 1977. She was sentenced to the Clinton Correctional Institution in New York but escaped in 1979 and was later granted political asylum in Cuba.

About the Author:
Dennis E. Byron is an award-winning investigative journalist, photographer, and Editor-in-Chief of Hip Hop Enquirer Magazine. With over three decades of experience covering hip hop culture, celebrity trials, and social justice issues, Byron has been on the frontlines of some of the most high-profile stories shaping both the entertainment industry and American society. He is also the founder of Byron Media Group, where his work continues to amplify voices often overlooked by mainstream media.

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