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As Born Black Magazine reports, on May 13, 1985, the City of Philadelphia launched a military assault on the MOVE Organization's home at 6221 Osage Ave. in West Philadelphia, officially done to solve a neighborhood dispute. That morning police shot over 10,000 rounds of bullets in 90 minutes, and detonated explosives on the front, and both sides of their house. Mayor Wilson Goode then refused to negotiate with MOVE during an afternoon standstill, and a State Police helicopter dropped a C-4 bomb, illegally supplied by the FBI, on the roof. The bomb started a fire that city officials allowed to burn, and eventually grew to destroy 60 homes: the entire block of a middle-class black neighborhood. This assault killed 5 children and 6 adults, including MOVE founder John Africa. 13-year old Birdie Africa and 30-year old Ramona Africa were the only survivors, after they dodged police gunfire and escaped from the fire with permanent burn scars.
On Saturday, May 16, MOVE is marking the 24th anniversary with a Philadelphia demonstration calling for the release of the eight remaining "MOVE 9" prisoners, who are currently eligible for parole, although Eddie Africa was denied parole last week.
RELATED: Spanish translation of Born Black article II Was Officer Ramp killed by police gunfire? An interview with Linn Washington Jr. MOVE 9 Parole Video Series VIDEOS: Confrontation in Philadelphia and MOVE (narrated by Howard Zinn) II Contact the Parole Board II Friends of MOVE, Slovakia II OnaMove.com
