by Minister of Information JR Valrey
After getting the call from my political godfather Shabaka Ji Jaga that his comrade and one of my early political mentors David “General Jap” Johnson had passed on, it made me reflect on the passing of the veterans of the old guard in our resistance movement and the responsibility of the vanguard on the frontline today.
I met David Johnson, aka General Jap, in the months leading up to the summer of 1997. At the time, I was a youngsta from Oakland intrigued by a young Black revolutionary movement called the Young Comrades that had recently emerged in Oakland led by some young adults who were a few years older than myself. My potna and writing mentor, the late Kevin Weston, was a member and introduced me to them at a Huey Newton birthday party that was organized at Castlemont High School in East Oakland by the Young Comrades and Panthers who were members of the Huey P. Newton Foundation.
I soon joined the Comrades, and the first major event that I had a hand in organizing was “Free Geronimo Day.” This was a community celebration for all of the Panthers, Guerillas and supporters who fought tirelessly for 27 years to free Geronimo Ji Jaga, the deputy Minister of Defense of the Black Panther Party and a political prisoner of war.
Young Comrades, Black Panthers and Black Guerrillas organized the event over months from the Young Comrades headquarters on 23rd Avenue and Foothill. From this experience, I got to know a large number of veterans from the Black Revolution of the past, but I was embraced most by a collective of Panthers and Guerrillas that frequented Shabaka’s family’s West Oakland residence, across the street from Lowell Park.
I would hang with the elders at Shabaka’s house two to four times a week. We would be debating, eating, or one of the veterans would be holding court teaching us the history and principles that they were taught in the movement in the ‘60s and ‘70s. General Jap was one of the most knowledgeable and comical when it came to teaching about the old days of the Black Prisoners Movement. He would regularly talk about the teachings and contributions of Comrade George Jackson and some of the other original members of the Black Guerrilla Family.
He would also talk a lot about why Black prisoners in California got organized in the 1960s and the terror and abuse that Black prisoners endured before the emergence of the Black Guerrilla Family.
I remember that one of the few things that greatly disturbed him was that he was a member of the San Quentin 6 case after the assassination of Comrade George Jackson, and by the late ‘90s all of his comrades in that case were freed with the support of the people, with one exception, Hugo Pinell.
Hugo Pinell was later assassinated in 2011 by the Aryan Nation on a California Prison yard. Both Pinell and Johnson were Afro-Latino freedom fighters in the Black Revolution. Johnson was Afro-Puerto Rican and Pinell was Afro-Nicaraguan.
I was around General Jap and Sundi the most out of the San Quentin 6 throughout my political life, and I remember how the assassination of Pinell affected them greatly. We spent days visiting Pinell’s family and organizing a memorial. They spent even more time speaking about Pinell’s legendary life and wrestling with the details surrounding his grisly assassination.
What I will remember most about General Jap is his undying loyalty and love for his comrades and oppressed people in general. General Jap was a serious teacher when it came to teaching about resistance. General Jap also loved to laugh and would make jokes or perform funny antics in the most serious of situations without hesitation.
General Jap was a revolutionary reggae head. His favorite song around me was “Bash Their Brains In” by the revolutionary poet Linton Kwesi Johnson. He turned me on to the artist and the song. One of the most memorable moments I had with General Jap was going backstage at the Ashkenaz in Berkeley to meet reggae legends 3rd World and Mutabaruka. And when they figured out who General Jap was, they were more excited than General Jap was to meet.
General Jap is my revolutionary uncle who, alongside a collective of a few of his comrades, patiently educated me and many other young organizers who worked alongside him at Geronimo Day, Black Family Day, The 2pac Conferences, at the Black Dot Cafe and at Eastside Arts Alliance.
General Jap is one of one, and as long as I live, I will honor and salute the legacy of this master teacher, organizer and revolutionary general of the highest order. Thank you for everything you’ve done personally for me and mine, as well as for what you have done in the resistance of the people.
JR Valrey is a veteran journalist who can be heard weekly on Wednesdays on 89.5FM KPOO or KPOO.com from noon to 3 p.m.. His work can also be heard on www.blockreportradioworld.com.
