To Donald Trump and the FBI, Assata Shakur is a terrorist who should spend the rest of her life behind bars.

But to her supporters she is a wrongly-convicted force for good, inspiring acts of kindness despite being on the run.

This November will mark 40 years since she escaped from a maximum security prison, where she was serving a life sentence for murdering a cop - a charge she has always denied.

Ms Shakur - godmother of late rapper Tupac - was the first woman to be put on the FBI's most wanted list and remains one of the bureau's 'most wanted terrorists'.

Despite this, organisations and campaigns continue to form in her name, providing outreach work for minority groups.

Ms Shakur, who denied murder, was the first woman to be placed on the FBI's most wanted list (
Image:
Bettmann Archive)

Ms Shakur, a member of the militant Black Liberation Army, was convicted of murdering State Trooper Werner Foerster in 1977.

She was in a car pulled over by the officer in 1973 and he was killed in an ensuing shootout in New Jersey.

The activist - who was herself injured in the incident - maintained her innocence, insisting that she was shot when she had her hands in the air.

She also said she could not have fired the fatal shot but this was rejected by a jury.

Two years later a group of supporters broke her out of the Clinton Correctional Facility for Women and she has been on the run ever since.

The FBI says her capture is a 'top priority' (
Image:
FBI)

The FBI is now offering a $2million reward for her capture, which it describes as a "top priority".

Ms Shakur - who changed her name in the 1960s from Joanne Chesimard - has been at the heart of a diplomatic row between the US and Cuba, where she was granted political asylum in 1984.

Inspired by her activism, an organisation named Assata's Daughters was set up in Chicago in 2015 to provide support for young black people in the city.

It provides workshops, access to health services and mentoring.

Its website states: "Our young people receive food to combat hunger, payment for their labor, access to assistance navigating capitalism, access to mental health resources, and short-term assistance in critical times."

The former Black Liberation Army was sentenced to life in prison in 1977 (
Image:
Bettmann Archive)

No one from the organisation was available to comment but a description on its site said: "The original collective came together in struggle as radical black feminist and organisers, under the shared respect, love, and study of Assata Shakur.

"They believed it was our collective duty to fight for our freedom.

"As an organization, AD continues to believe in that collective duty to fight for the liberation of black people."

Last year Donald Trump demanded Ms Shakur's return from the Cuban government, telling the neighbouring country: "Return the fugitives from American justice, including the return of the cop killer Joanne Chesimard."

In February the National Association for the Advancement of Coloured People (NAACP) faced a backlash after her words were used to open a conference in Washington DC.

Jamal Watkins, the organisation's Vice President of Civic Engagement, asked the audience to repeat her words: “It is our duty to fight for our freedom. It is our duty to win. We must love each other and support each other. We have nothing to lose but our chains.”

This sparked a furious response from New Jersey Attorney General Gurbir Grewal, who wrote on Twitter : "There are many inspirational leaders. Assata Shakur is not one of them. To invoke her words is to dishonor the State Trooper she was convicted of murdering."

Supporters maintain Ms Shakur was wrongly convicted (
Image:
Bettmann Archive)

Ms Shakur, who published an autobiography in exile, which has been a bestseller worldwide, said she had no choice but to flee.

She wrote: "Because of government persecution, I was left with no other choice than to flee from the political repression, racism and violence that dominate the US government's policy towards people of color.

"I am an ex political prisoner and I have been living in exile in Cuba since 1984.

"I have been a political activist most of my life, and although the U.S. government has done everything in its power to criminalize me, I am not a criminal, nor have I ever been one."

The FBI says differently, writing in an appeal: "Chesimard and her accomplices opened fire on the troopers.

Donald Trump has demanded Assata Shakur is returned to the US (
Image:
REUTERS)

"One trooper was wounded and the other was shot and killed execution-style at point-blank range.

"Chesimard fled the scene, but was subsequently apprehended.

"One of her accomplices was killed in the shoot-out and the other was also apprehended and remains in jail.

"In 1977, Chesimard was found guilty of first degree murder, assault and battery of a police officer, assault with a dangerous weapon, assault with intent to kill, illegal possession of a weapon, and armed robbery.

"She was sentenced to life in prison.

"On November 2, 1979, Chesimard escaped from prison and lived underground before being located in Cuba in 1984. She is thought to currently still be living in Cuba."

The fugitive is described by the bureau as "armed and dangerous".