1 00:00:00,600 --> 00:00:02,320 Speaker 1: The Stay in History Class. It's a production of I 2 00:00:02,400 --> 00:00:07,560 Speaker 1: Heart Radio. Hey I'm Eves, and Welcome to This Day 3 00:00:07,600 --> 00:00:11,479 Speaker 1: in History Class, a show that uncovers history one day 4 00:00:11,520 --> 00:00:24,440 Speaker 1: at a time. Today is nineteen The day was made thirteenth, 5 00:00:24,680 --> 00:00:29,520 Speaker 1: nineteen five. The only aerial bombing committed by police in 6 00:00:29,520 --> 00:00:34,760 Speaker 1: the United States took place in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The bombing 7 00:00:34,760 --> 00:00:37,879 Speaker 1: was a response to years of escalating conflict between police 8 00:00:37,920 --> 00:00:41,640 Speaker 1: and MOVE, a radical black liberation group. It ended in 9 00:00:41,680 --> 00:00:45,120 Speaker 1: the death of eleven people and the destruction of dozens 10 00:00:45,159 --> 00:00:49,400 Speaker 1: of houses. MOVE was founded in nineteen seventy two by 11 00:00:49,479 --> 00:00:54,440 Speaker 1: John Africa born Vincent Lepard. The early nineteen seventies was 12 00:00:54,520 --> 00:00:58,200 Speaker 1: a turbulent time in American race relations, as black power 13 00:00:58,280 --> 00:01:02,480 Speaker 1: groups organized to demand rights and protested the social ills 14 00:01:02,520 --> 00:01:06,800 Speaker 1: of contemporary society. On top of that, opposition to the 15 00:01:06,800 --> 00:01:10,600 Speaker 1: protracted Vietnam War was causing a lot of political strife. 16 00:01:12,000 --> 00:01:15,279 Speaker 1: After John Africa served in the Korean War, he became 17 00:01:15,360 --> 00:01:20,160 Speaker 1: dissatisfied with life in America. John Africa and MOVE advocated 18 00:01:20,200 --> 00:01:25,120 Speaker 1: for black nationalism and anarcho primitivism. They wanted to return 19 00:01:25,200 --> 00:01:29,360 Speaker 1: to a hunter gatherer society without modern technology and medicine. 20 00:01:30,200 --> 00:01:33,320 Speaker 1: They also supported animal rights as they believed that all 21 00:01:33,360 --> 00:01:37,679 Speaker 1: living beings should be treated ethically. Members of MOVE changed 22 00:01:37,720 --> 00:01:41,120 Speaker 1: their last name to Africa and recognition of their homeland, 23 00:01:41,760 --> 00:01:45,520 Speaker 1: and the organization was not quiet about its socio political aims. 24 00:01:46,720 --> 00:01:50,920 Speaker 1: MOVE members lived communally, mainly in West Philadelphia. A big 25 00:01:50,960 --> 00:01:54,800 Speaker 1: part of MOVE philosophy, detailed in the three page manifesto, 26 00:01:54,960 --> 00:01:58,400 Speaker 1: known as the Teaching of John Africa, is self reliance. 27 00:01:59,040 --> 00:02:02,480 Speaker 1: That means that Movement verse eight raw food, composted, and 28 00:02:02,520 --> 00:02:06,040 Speaker 1: scavenged even when in the city. They lived a life 29 00:02:06,080 --> 00:02:09,240 Speaker 1: close to nature, but their neighbors took issue with their 30 00:02:09,240 --> 00:02:12,280 Speaker 1: ways of life and how loud their public demonstrations for 31 00:02:12,440 --> 00:02:16,960 Speaker 1: racial justice and animal rights were. In nineteen seventy seven, 32 00:02:17,240 --> 00:02:19,919 Speaker 1: people complained about the way MOVE members lived and how 33 00:02:19,960 --> 00:02:22,960 Speaker 1: loud their protests were. Their neighbors said they had too 34 00:02:22,960 --> 00:02:26,560 Speaker 1: many animals on their property, were violating weapons codes, were 35 00:02:26,639 --> 00:02:31,200 Speaker 1: keeping filthy conditions, and refusing to pay utility bills. So 36 00:02:31,240 --> 00:02:33,680 Speaker 1: the police got a court order that required the group 37 00:02:33,720 --> 00:02:36,840 Speaker 1: to vacate their compound and pouton village at three oh 38 00:02:36,880 --> 00:02:40,679 Speaker 1: seven to three oh nine North thirty third Street. MOVE 39 00:02:40,760 --> 00:02:43,560 Speaker 1: agreed to leave the location and give up their weapons 40 00:02:43,840 --> 00:02:47,360 Speaker 1: if members who were arrested during demonstrations were released from jail. 41 00:02:48,240 --> 00:02:52,360 Speaker 1: The police agreed, Moves did not leave the property. The 42 00:02:52,440 --> 00:02:55,000 Speaker 1: next year, that conflict took a turn for the worst. 43 00:02:56,240 --> 00:02:59,440 Speaker 1: On August nine, seventy eight, police showed up at the 44 00:02:59,480 --> 00:03:03,239 Speaker 1: compounds execute the court order. That turned into a standoff 45 00:03:03,280 --> 00:03:08,000 Speaker 1: where five firefighters, seven police officers, three MOVE members, and 46 00:03:08,080 --> 00:03:12,080 Speaker 1: three bystanders were hurt. Police Officer James J. Ramp was 47 00:03:12,120 --> 00:03:14,519 Speaker 1: shot in the back of his neck and died during 48 00:03:14,560 --> 00:03:18,600 Speaker 1: the firefight, though there was back and forth over whether 49 00:03:18,600 --> 00:03:21,079 Speaker 1: the fatal gunshot could have come from a MOVE weapon. 50 00:03:21,840 --> 00:03:26,000 Speaker 1: Nine MOVE members, dubbed the Move nine were arrested and 51 00:03:26,040 --> 00:03:31,880 Speaker 1: convicted of third degree murder. Move transferred to one O 52 00:03:32,040 --> 00:03:36,080 Speaker 1: Sage Avenue, still in West Philadelphia. They put bunkers in 53 00:03:36,120 --> 00:03:38,680 Speaker 1: the house and on the roof, and they blasted their 54 00:03:38,680 --> 00:03:42,960 Speaker 1: message from a bullhorn day and night. Neighbors again complained 55 00:03:42,960 --> 00:03:46,320 Speaker 1: about the cleanliness of the house and excessive animals, and 56 00:03:46,360 --> 00:03:49,880 Speaker 1: said that MOVE members were committing verbal and physical assaults. 57 00:03:50,720 --> 00:03:55,400 Speaker 1: So on May thirteenth, nine, Mayor of Philadelphia W. Wilson 58 00:03:55,440 --> 00:03:58,320 Speaker 1: Good sent police to the home to execute warrants for 59 00:03:58,320 --> 00:04:01,080 Speaker 1: the arrest of all the people lived at the compound, 60 00:04:01,880 --> 00:04:04,920 Speaker 1: but when police arrived at the house, MOVE members did 61 00:04:04,960 --> 00:04:07,560 Speaker 1: not respond to their demands to let them into the 62 00:04:07,680 --> 00:04:12,040 Speaker 1: home or to let children inside leave. Police Commissioner greg 63 00:04:12,120 --> 00:04:17,120 Speaker 1: Or Sandborg said over a loudspeaker attention MOVE, this is America, 64 00:04:17,560 --> 00:04:21,679 Speaker 1: and began attacking MOVE. Police used fire hoses on the house, 65 00:04:22,120 --> 00:04:26,040 Speaker 1: fumigated the house with tear gas, then began shooting thousands 66 00:04:26,080 --> 00:04:30,640 Speaker 1: of rounds into the compound. A Pennsylvania State Police helicopter 67 00:04:30,760 --> 00:04:34,160 Speaker 1: dropped C four explosives onto the house, which caused the 68 00:04:34,240 --> 00:04:37,120 Speaker 1: fire that was further fueled by gasoline in the house. 69 00:04:37,960 --> 00:04:41,839 Speaker 1: Because the firefight ensued, police let the fire spread rather 70 00:04:41,920 --> 00:04:46,400 Speaker 1: than send in firefighters. The fire destroyed more than sixty homes, 71 00:04:46,440 --> 00:04:50,200 Speaker 1: and six adults and five children inside the home were killed. 72 00:04:51,839 --> 00:04:54,240 Speaker 1: John Africa was one of the people who died in 73 00:04:54,279 --> 00:04:57,919 Speaker 1: the incident. The only MOVE members to survive the attack 74 00:04:58,279 --> 00:05:03,120 Speaker 1: were Ramona Africa and d Africa. The incident was covered 75 00:05:03,200 --> 00:05:07,360 Speaker 1: live on television. Philadelphia had become the quote city that 76 00:05:07,400 --> 00:05:12,080 Speaker 1: bombed itself. Mayor good enlisted a commission to investigate the 77 00:05:12,080 --> 00:05:15,960 Speaker 1: bombing in nineteen eighty six. The commissions in March sixth, 78 00:05:16,120 --> 00:05:20,320 Speaker 1: nineteen six report said that negotiations were haphazard, the mayor's 79 00:05:20,320 --> 00:05:23,000 Speaker 1: failure to put an end to the operation was quote 80 00:05:23,240 --> 00:05:28,640 Speaker 1: grossly negligent, and dropping the bomb was quote unconscionable. The 81 00:05:28,680 --> 00:05:31,400 Speaker 1: commission declared that the police would not have used the 82 00:05:31,440 --> 00:05:35,160 Speaker 1: same violent tactics in a white neighborhood. But even though 83 00:05:35,160 --> 00:05:38,800 Speaker 1: the commission called for a grand jury investigation, there were 84 00:05:38,800 --> 00:05:42,640 Speaker 1: no prosecutions, and Good was re elected in nineteen eighty seven. 85 00:05:44,520 --> 00:05:48,080 Speaker 1: Ramona Africa was convicted on riot charges and spent seven 86 00:05:48,160 --> 00:05:51,400 Speaker 1: years in prison. She and the family members of two 87 00:05:51,400 --> 00:05:54,559 Speaker 1: relatives who were killed in the attack one one point 88 00:05:54,640 --> 00:05:58,440 Speaker 1: five million dollars in a civil suit judgment. The federal 89 00:05:58,560 --> 00:06:02,839 Speaker 1: jury also found that officials authorized excessive use of force 90 00:06:03,200 --> 00:06:07,760 Speaker 1: and violated Fourth Amendment rights. Bertie Africa, who was just 91 00:06:08,000 --> 00:06:10,479 Speaker 1: thirteen at the time of the bombing, went back to 92 00:06:10,600 --> 00:06:13,400 Speaker 1: using the name Michael Ward and was placed in his 93 00:06:13,480 --> 00:06:19,000 Speaker 1: father's custody. Cobbs Creek, the neighborhood where the compound was located, 94 00:06:19,040 --> 00:06:23,240 Speaker 1: never completely recovered. The homes built to replace those destroyed 95 00:06:23,279 --> 00:06:26,480 Speaker 1: were shoddily constructed, and when the city bought the homes 96 00:06:26,480 --> 00:06:32,279 Speaker 1: in the early two thousand's residents left in droves. Newly 97 00:06:32,320 --> 00:06:35,520 Speaker 1: rehabbed homes in the neighborhood were ready for sale, though 98 00:06:35,600 --> 00:06:38,479 Speaker 1: neighbors were worried about the high prices driving them out. 99 00:06:40,080 --> 00:06:42,560 Speaker 1: I'm Eves jeffco and hopefully you know a little more 100 00:06:42,560 --> 00:06:47,640 Speaker 1: about history today than you did yesterday. If you're so inclined, 101 00:06:47,800 --> 00:06:51,280 Speaker 1: you can follow us at T D i h C 102 00:06:51,640 --> 00:06:56,440 Speaker 1: Podcasts on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter. We'll be back with 103 00:06:56,480 --> 00:07:04,039 Speaker 1: more history tomorrow. Yeah. For more podcasts from iHeart Radio, 104 00:07:04,160 --> 00:07:06,800 Speaker 1: visit the iHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you 105 00:07:06,839 --> 00:07:07,919 Speaker 1: listen to your favorite shows.