MOVE

This article is about the organization MOVE. For other uses, see Move (disambiguation).

MOVE or the MOVE Organization is a Philadelphia-based black liberation group founded by John Africa. MOVE was described by CNN as "a loose-knit, mostly black group whose members all adopted the surname Africa, advocated a "back-to-nature" lifestyle and preached against technology."^[1] The group lives communally and frequently engages in public demonstrations related to several issues.

Since the 1970s, their activities have drawn the attention of the Philadelphia Police Department. A major incident occurred in 1978, when the police raided their Powelton Village home. This raid resulted in the death of one police officer and the imprisonment of nine group members, now known as "The MOVE 9." After this, the group relocated further west to a house on Osage Ave.

In 1985, the group made national news when police dropped a bomb on the Osage house from a helicopter in an attempt to end an armed standoff. The bombing resulted in 11 deaths, including five children and the group's leader, John Africa. Only two occupants survived, Ramona, an adult and Birdie, a child. In addition, 60 homes were destroyed in the resulting fires.^[2]

Origins and beliefs

MOVE was founded in 1972 as the "Christian Movement for Life" by John Africa, a charismatic leader who, though functionally illiterate, dictated a document describing his views known as The Guideline to graduate student Donald Glassey. Africa and his followers (the majority of them African-American), wore their hair in dreadlocks and advocated a radical form of green politics and a return to hunter-gatherer society while stating their opposition to science, medicine and technology. As John Africa himself had done, his devotees also changed their surnames to show reverence to Africa, which they regarded as their mother continent.^[3]

Activities prior to 1978

The MOVE members lived in a commune in a house owned by Donald Glassey in the Powelton Village section of West Philadelphia. MOVE members staged bullhorn-amplified, profanity-laced demonstrations against institutions which they opposed morally, such as zoos (MOVE had strong views on animal rights), and speakers whose views they opposed. MOVE made compost piles of garbage and human waste in their yards which attracted rats and cockroaches; they considered it morally wrong to kill the vermin with pest control. MOVE attracted much hostility from their neighbors. Their actions brought close scrutiny from the Philadelphia police.^[3]

1978 shoot-out

In 1978, an end was negotiated to an almost year-long standoff with police over orders to vacate the Powelton Village MOVE house. MOVE failed to relocate as required by a court order.^[4] When police later attempted entry, Philadelphia police officer James J. Ramp was killed by a shot to the back of the head. The source of the bullet is controversial, as the scene of the crime was ultimately destroyed by further action from the police. MOVE representatives claim that he was facing the house at the time, which would therefore negate the notion that MOVE was responsible for his death. Seven other police officers, five firefighters, three MOVE members, and three bystanders were injured in an unrelated crossfire.^[5] As a result, nine MOVE members were found guilty of third-degree murder in the shooting death of a police officer. Seven of the nine became eligible for parole in the spring of 2008, and all seven were denied parole.^[6][7] Parole hearings now occur yearly.

1985 bombing

In 1981, MOVE relocated to a row house at 6221 Osage Avenue in the Cobbs Creek area of West Philadelphia. On May 13, 1985, responding to months of complaints by neighbors that MOVE members broadcast political messages by bullhorn at all hours and also about the health hazards posed by the piles of compost, as well as indictments of various MOVE members for various crimes, including parole violation, contempt of court, illegal possession of firearms, and making terrorist threats^[8] the police department attempted to clear the building and arrest the indicted MOVE members, which lead to an armed standoff with police.^[9] The police lobbed tear gas canisters at the building and the fire department battered the roof of the house with two water cannons. MOVE members fired on the police, and the police responded by returning fire.^{[citation needed]} A police helicopter then dropped a four-pound bomb made of C-4 plastic explosive and Tovex, a dynamite substitute, onto the roof of the house.

The resulting explosion caused incendiary materials listed in the police indictment, and stored by MOVE in the house, to catch fire, thus causing the house to catch fire. The resulting fire ignited a massive blaze which eventually destroyed 65 houses.^[2][10][11] Eleven people, including John Africa, five other adults and five children, died in the resulting fire.^[12] The firefighters were stopped from putting out the fire based on allegations that firefighters were being shot at, a claim that was contested by the lone adult survivor Ramona Africa, who says that the firefighters had earlier battered the house with two deluge pumps when there was no fire.^[10] Ramona Africa and one child, Birdie Africa, were the only survivors.

Aftermath

Mayor W. Wilson Goode soon appointed an investigative commission called the PSIC or MOVE commission. It issued its report on March 6, 1986. The report denounced the actions of the city government, stating that "Dropping a bomb on an occupied row house was unconscionable."^[13] No one from the city government was charged criminally.

In a 1996 civil suit in US federal court, a jury ordered the City of Philadelphia to pay $1.5 million to a survivor and relatives of two people killed in the incident. The jury found that the city used excessive force and violated the members' constitutional protection against unreasonable search and seizure.^[12] Philadelphia was given the sobriquet "The City that Bombed Itself."^[14][15]

On the 25th Anniversary of the 1985 Police bombing, the Philadelphia Inquirer created a detailed multimedia site containing retrospective articles, archived articles, videos, interviews, photos, and a timeline of the events.^[16]

2002 murder of John Gilbride

After the death of John Africa, his widow, Alberta, married John Gilbride Jr and had a child, Zackary Africa, circa 1996. The couple divorced in 1999. After a custody battle, a court ruling granted Gilbride partial custody of Zackary, allowing him unsupervised visits with his son. Gilbride moved to Maple Shade, NJ. Prior to his first visitation date with Zackary, an unknown assailant shot Gilbride dead by automatic weapon fire as he sat in his car shortly after midnight on September 27 while parked outside his home in an execution-style slaying. The case remains unsolved. MOVE initially conjectured that the US government had assassinated Gilbride in order to frame MOVE. Alberta Africa, who initially acknowledged the murder, claimed in 2009 that Gilbride "is out hiding somewhere".^[17]

Current activities

Ramona Africa acts as a spokesperson for the group and has given numerous talks at leftist events throughout the US and in other countries. MOVE continues to advocate for the release of jailed MOVE sympathizer and former resident of Philadelphia, Mumia Abu-Jamal, convicted of the 1981 murder of police officer Daniel Faulkner. MOVE has also called for the release of imprisoned MOVE members, whom the group considers political prisoners.

References in music

• "Old Guards, New Methods" by Verse
• "Be Careful Tonight" by Beru Revue
• "City of Soul" by Australia's Eurogliders
• "Best I Can" by The Welfare Poets
• "Operation M.O.V.E." by Leftöver Crack
• "M.O.V.E." by Fifth Column
• "Mumia's Song" by Anti-Flag
• "No Justice, No Peace" by Aus-Rotten
• "Philadelphia" by Atom and his Package
• "Save a City..." by Mischief Brew
• "Stonez of Christ" by Jedi Mind Tricks featuring Jus Allah
• "Watermelon City" by Elizabeth Alexander on the DJ /rupture album Special Gunpowder
• "My Skin is My Sin" by Ice Cube
• "Proper Propaganda" by Dilated Peoples
• "Rain of Terror" by The Last Poets
• "The Human Element" by Talib Kweli
• "Fire Pon Di Government" by Anthony B on That's Life
• "Black Survivors" by Anthony B
• "Fistful of Steel" by Rage Against the Machine on Rage Against the Machine
• "Two Words" by Kanye West^{[citation needed]}
• ""The State I'm In" aka "Goode Buy from Cobbs Creek Park"" by Karate on Pockets
• "Sunset on 32nd" by Strike Anywhere (contains a reference to the MOVE bombing in the second verse)
• "MOVE" by Pistol Monk
• A novelty version of "The Twelve Days of Christmas" made reference to the 1985 incident with reference to "a new row house on Osage Avenue".
• "MOVE" by The Micranots

See also

Philadelphia portal

• Anarcho-primitivism
• David Shrager
• Neo-Luddite

References

1. ^ Philadelphia, city officials ordered to pay $1.5 million in MOVE case; 1996-06-24; CNN.
2. ^ ^{a b} Brian Jenkins (April 2, 1996). "MOVE siege returns to haunt city". CNN.com. http://edition.cnn.com/US/9604/02/move_court/. Retrieved 2008-08-01. 
3. ^ ^{a b} John Anderson and Hilary Hevenor, Burning Down the House: MOVE and the tragedy of Philadelphia, W.W. Norton & Co., 1987, ISBN 0-393-02460-1
4. ^ "Nose to Nose: Philadelphia confronts a cult". TIME magazine. August 14, 1978. http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,946962,00.html. Retrieved 2007-05-20. 
5. ^ "Surrender Immediately". TIME magazine Nine members of the organization were sentenced to a minimum of thirty years for third degree murder. August 21, 1978. http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,919800,00.html. Retrieved 2007-05-20. 
6. ^ Emilie Lounsberry (February 28, 2008). "MOVE members due for parole hearing". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Archived from the original on 2008-04-11. http://web.archive.org/web/20080411115748/http://www.philly.com/philly/news/homepage/20080228_MOVE_members_due_for_parole_hearing.html. Retrieved 2008-03-05. 
7. ^ Lounsberry, Emilie (June 5, 2008). "MOVE members denied parole". The Philadelphia Inquirer newspaper: pp. B06 .
8. ^ Read more: http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,956982,00.html#ixzz1OsJPEPzW
9. ^ Account of 1985 incident from USA Today.
10. ^ ^{a b} 25 Years Ago: Philadelphia Police Bombs MOVE Headquarters Killing 11, Destroying 65 Homes
11. ^ Frank Trippett (May 27, 1985). "It Looks Just Like a War Zone". TIME magazine. http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,956982,00.html. Retrieved 2009-02-15. "The Move property on Osage Avenue had become notorious for its abundant litter of garbage and human waste and for its scurrying rats and dozens of dogs. Bullhorns blared forth obscene tirades and harangues at all times of day and night. Move members customarily kept their children out of both clothes and school. They physically assaulted some neighbors and threatened others." 
12. ^ ^{a b} Terry, Don (1996-06-25). "Philadelphia Held Liable For Firebomb Fatal to 11". The New York Times. http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9E0DEFDE1239F936A15755C0A960958260&sec=&spon=&pagewanted=all. Retrieved May 13, 2010. 
13. ^ "Philadelphia Special Investigation (MOVE) Commission Manuscript Collection". http://library.temple.edu/collections/urbana/psic-01.jsp. Retrieved 2008-04-12. 
14. ^ G Shaffer, C Tiger, DL Root (2008). Compass American Guides Pennsylvania. 
15. ^ Larry Eichel (May 8, 2005). The MOVE Disaster: May 13, 1985. Philadelphia Inquirer. http://www.religionnewsblog.com/11182/the-move-disaster-may-13-1985 
16. ^ "MOVE 25 years later". The Philadelphia Inquirer. http://www.philly.com/philly/news/93137669.html. Retrieved 2010-05-09. 
17. ^ September 26, 2009, Nark, Jason, "Slaying of ex-MOVEr still roils feelings 7 years later" http://www.phillyimc.org/en/slaying-ex-mover-still-roils-feelings-7-years-later

Further reading

• John Anderson and Hilary Hevenor, Burning Down the House: MOVE and the tragedy of Philadelphia, W.W. Norton & Co., 1987, ISBN 0-393-02460-1.
• Robin Wagner-Pacifici, Discourse and Destruction: The City of Philadelphia versus MOVE (1994) University of Chicago Press
• Johanna Saleh Dickson; Move: Sites of Trauma (Pamphlet Architecture 23) (2002) Princeton: Architectural Press
• Toni Cade Bambara The Bombing of Osage Avenue Philadelphia: WHYY. DVD OCLC 95315483
• Margot Harry, Attention Move! This is America (1987) Chicago: Banner Press, ISBN 0916650324
• Michael Boyette & Randi Boyette, Let it Burn! (1989) Chicago: Contemporary Press, ISBN 0809245434
• Ramona Africa (Contr. Author). "This Country Must Change: Essays on the Necessity of Revolution in the USA" (Arissa Media Group, 2009) ISBN 9780974288475

External links

Pro-MOVE

• Official MOVE website
• "John Africa's MOVE Organization" – collection of pro-MOVE documents

Anti-MOVE

• Blog of MOVE critic and former member Tony Allen
• Web archive of the now-defunct MoveOrganization.com, "Dedicated To Educating The Public About the Cult Known as the MOVE Organization"

News media

• Mindfully.org's scan of a 1985 New York Times story on the bombing
• A 1996 New York Times article recounting the story of the bombing and the ensuing trial
• NPR: Philadelphia MOVE Bombing Still Haunts Survivors 2005 retrospective of 1985 incident.
• E-library of documents concerning the group (registration required)
• Philadelphia: 1980s, MOVE siege – 30 photos related to the 1985 incident from the Philadelphia Inquirer.
• USA Today, "1985 bombing in Philadelphia still unsettled" May 11, 2005 – a Twenty year look back
• 25 Years Ago: Philadelphia Police Bombs MOVE Headquarters Killing 11, Destroying 65 Homes – video report by Democracy Now!

Primary sources

• Report of the Philadelphia Special Investigation Commission (AKA the "MOVE Commission")

Coordinates: 39°57′20″N 75°14′49″W / 39.955683°N 75.246868°W / 39.955683; -75.246868