Hampton
25th January 2004, 16:40
John Africa vs. The System
During the standoff in the summer of 1977, federal ATF agents had gotten Donald Glassey, a former MOVE associate, to implicate the organization in a bomb making and gun running scheme. But when 10 indictments were handed down on September 1, 1977, only two actual MOVE members were named: Vincent and Alfonso Africa. It took federal agents over 3 years to find them. Meanwhile Glassey was put in the federal witness protection program.
In July 1981 John Africa and Alfonso Africa conducted their own defense during the trial. John slept through most of the prosecutor’s evidence, such as the case of the cops, ATF, explosive experts and Glassey. His only formal remarks to the court would be his closing arguments in which he condemned the entire system and exposed the courts as mere tools of those who poison the air and water. Most were stunned when the jury declared John and Alfonso innocent on all charges.
Mumia
One of the few people to accurately report on MOVE and maker serious efforts to understand the organization was Mumia, who at the time was a well respected journalist and president of the local chapter of the Association of Black Journalists.
December 9th, 1981 Mumia was shot and arrested for the murder of Daniel Faulkner. Info on Mumia look Here (http://www.mumia.org)
Pre-text to Bombing
During the early 1980’s several MOVE members and many children lived in a row house at 6221 Osage Ave on the west edge of the city. Fresh fruit was put outside to encourage passing children and adults to eat fruit, MOVE also built stoves and supplied firewood to people without heat, checked on elderly living alone and built dog houses for those without during the winter.
On December 25, 1983 MOVE by-passed the media blackout of those in jail and in a direct appeal to the public began using loudspeakers on their house to inform people of the injustice. When some Osage Avenue residents began to complain about the noise, MOVE told them they should put pressure on the city to do something about the innocent people in jail, the neighbors instead appealed to the city and put their trust that the government would seek a way to get MOVE out of the neighborhood.
As months wore on more news stories about the neighbors disagreements rather than on the MOVE prisoners. Between June and October Alfonso Africa was arrested and beaten bloody several times by police and shot (not fatal) during one arrest.
On May 8th Alfonso Africa was sentenced to 5 years for threatening an officer during a prior arrest. On May 11th, police obtained a warrant for the arrest of Alfonso even though he was already in jail, and used it two days later to justify using tear gas on Alfonso’s home in Chester, PA. The only adult present, his wife Mary, was arrested and their 5 children were taken away as police ransacked the house.
The Bombing
To provide a legal basis for the attack, Judge Lynn Abraham signed arrest warrants on May 11th for Ramona, Conrad, Frank, and Teresa Africa on charges of disorderly conduct and terrorist threats. The next day police evacuated the 6200 block of Osage Ave and towed away parked cars.
On Monday May 13th, police and firemen launched a full scale attack on the MOVE house using tear gas, water cannons, shot guns, Uzi’s, M-16s, M-60 machine guns, a 20mm anti-tank gun, and a 50 caliber machine gun. Some of the weapons, obtained illegally, with help from the ATF.
Between 6:00 and 7:30 police flooded the area with tear gas and fired over 10, 000 round of ammunition at the house where women and children lived. They also tried to blast through the walls with military explosives provided by the FBI.
Late in the afternoon, a state police helicopter was used to drop a bomb on the roof which started a fire that officials deliberately allowed to burn. It soon spread to the adjoining row houses, eventually burning down the entire block of some 60 homes.
While trying to exit the house , those inside were meet with police gunfire which killed some of the adult and children in the alley behind the house. One adult, Ramona Africa, and one child, Birdy Africa, escaped the fire and were taken into custody. Six adult and five children were killed, including Rhonda Africa, Birdy’s mother.
Those killed in the bombing and subsequent shooting were:
Conrad Africa, age 36
Thomaso Africa, age 9
Theresa Africa, age 26
Katricia "Free" Dotson, age 14
Raymond Africa, age 50
Zenetta Dotson, age 13
Rhonda Africa, age 30
Delicia Africa, age 11
Frank James Africa, age 26
Phil Africa, age 11
John Africa, age 54
http://www.angelfire.com/ga/dregeye/images/p50a.jpg
http://quest.cjonline.com/images/071400/move.jpg
http://www.cnn.com/US/9606/24/move.vertict/fire.large.jpg
http://www.cnn.com/US/9606/24/move.vertict/stretcher.large.jpg
http://www.mindfully.org/Reform/MOVE-Phihladelphia-BombNYT14may85b.GIF
Part 3 coming to a town near you...
Never Forgive, Never Forget (http://rwor.org/a/v22/1052-059/1057/move.htm)
During the standoff in the summer of 1977, federal ATF agents had gotten Donald Glassey, a former MOVE associate, to implicate the organization in a bomb making and gun running scheme. But when 10 indictments were handed down on September 1, 1977, only two actual MOVE members were named: Vincent and Alfonso Africa. It took federal agents over 3 years to find them. Meanwhile Glassey was put in the federal witness protection program.
In July 1981 John Africa and Alfonso Africa conducted their own defense during the trial. John slept through most of the prosecutor’s evidence, such as the case of the cops, ATF, explosive experts and Glassey. His only formal remarks to the court would be his closing arguments in which he condemned the entire system and exposed the courts as mere tools of those who poison the air and water. Most were stunned when the jury declared John and Alfonso innocent on all charges.
Mumia
One of the few people to accurately report on MOVE and maker serious efforts to understand the organization was Mumia, who at the time was a well respected journalist and president of the local chapter of the Association of Black Journalists.
December 9th, 1981 Mumia was shot and arrested for the murder of Daniel Faulkner. Info on Mumia look Here (http://www.mumia.org)
Pre-text to Bombing
During the early 1980’s several MOVE members and many children lived in a row house at 6221 Osage Ave on the west edge of the city. Fresh fruit was put outside to encourage passing children and adults to eat fruit, MOVE also built stoves and supplied firewood to people without heat, checked on elderly living alone and built dog houses for those without during the winter.
On December 25, 1983 MOVE by-passed the media blackout of those in jail and in a direct appeal to the public began using loudspeakers on their house to inform people of the injustice. When some Osage Avenue residents began to complain about the noise, MOVE told them they should put pressure on the city to do something about the innocent people in jail, the neighbors instead appealed to the city and put their trust that the government would seek a way to get MOVE out of the neighborhood.
As months wore on more news stories about the neighbors disagreements rather than on the MOVE prisoners. Between June and October Alfonso Africa was arrested and beaten bloody several times by police and shot (not fatal) during one arrest.
On May 8th Alfonso Africa was sentenced to 5 years for threatening an officer during a prior arrest. On May 11th, police obtained a warrant for the arrest of Alfonso even though he was already in jail, and used it two days later to justify using tear gas on Alfonso’s home in Chester, PA. The only adult present, his wife Mary, was arrested and their 5 children were taken away as police ransacked the house.
The Bombing
To provide a legal basis for the attack, Judge Lynn Abraham signed arrest warrants on May 11th for Ramona, Conrad, Frank, and Teresa Africa on charges of disorderly conduct and terrorist threats. The next day police evacuated the 6200 block of Osage Ave and towed away parked cars.
On Monday May 13th, police and firemen launched a full scale attack on the MOVE house using tear gas, water cannons, shot guns, Uzi’s, M-16s, M-60 machine guns, a 20mm anti-tank gun, and a 50 caliber machine gun. Some of the weapons, obtained illegally, with help from the ATF.
Between 6:00 and 7:30 police flooded the area with tear gas and fired over 10, 000 round of ammunition at the house where women and children lived. They also tried to blast through the walls with military explosives provided by the FBI.
Late in the afternoon, a state police helicopter was used to drop a bomb on the roof which started a fire that officials deliberately allowed to burn. It soon spread to the adjoining row houses, eventually burning down the entire block of some 60 homes.
While trying to exit the house , those inside were meet with police gunfire which killed some of the adult and children in the alley behind the house. One adult, Ramona Africa, and one child, Birdy Africa, escaped the fire and were taken into custody. Six adult and five children were killed, including Rhonda Africa, Birdy’s mother.
Those killed in the bombing and subsequent shooting were:
Conrad Africa, age 36
Thomaso Africa, age 9
Theresa Africa, age 26
Katricia "Free" Dotson, age 14
Raymond Africa, age 50
Zenetta Dotson, age 13
Rhonda Africa, age 30
Delicia Africa, age 11
Frank James Africa, age 26
Phil Africa, age 11
John Africa, age 54
http://www.angelfire.com/ga/dregeye/images/p50a.jpg
http://quest.cjonline.com/images/071400/move.jpg
http://www.cnn.com/US/9606/24/move.vertict/fire.large.jpg
http://www.cnn.com/US/9606/24/move.vertict/stretcher.large.jpg
http://www.mindfully.org/Reform/MOVE-Phihladelphia-BombNYT14may85b.GIF
Part 3 coming to a town near you...
Never Forgive, Never Forget (http://rwor.org/a/v22/1052-059/1057/move.htm)