From the series Uncuffed:
Sanyika Shakur, formerly known as “Monster” Kody Scott, is getting out of incarceration. While incarcerated in 1993, he published “Monster: The Autobiography of an L.A. Gang Member,” which made him famous.
A former member of the Eight Tray Crips gang, Shakur has been in and out of confinement since he was 14. Now, he says he is a “Monster” no more.
I was a criminal. I became a revolutionary. And people expected me to commit class suicide as a successful writer and become a noted author, and to me, I didn't want to go that way. I didn't want to be the go to guy when they said, 'What about gangs?' Because that's not what it's about.
UPDATE: Shakur was released in 2019. After his release, in June of 2021, Shakur was found dead in a tent in San Diego county. As of June 23, the cause of death has not been determined, but authorities say it appears he died of natural causes.
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