!*MOVE Confrontation Alert
!*MOVE Confrontation Alert
Posted by: "[email protected]" [email protected]
Tue May 13, 2008 11:08 am (PDT)
On today, May 13, 1985, 11 MOVE men, women and children were bombed,
burned and shot to death in the city of Philadelphia. No police officer
or city, state or federal official did one second of one moment of jail
time for these horrific murders. The sole adult survivor, Ramona Africa,
did seven years in prison simply for surviving that wicked day.
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via: [email protected]
LONG LIVE JOHN AFRICA
LONG LIVE JOHN AFRICA
The MOVE Organization wants to alert people to a situation that happened at
our home at approximately 11:pm on Thurs., May 8th. About eight young Black
kids (between 16 and 18 years old) were jumping up and down in the back of
and walking on top of our pick-up. When one of our supporters saw them, he
told them to get out of our truck. They were getting belligerent with him and
one our sisters came over and she gave them some information too. The kids
got out of the truck, walked across the street and stood on the corner a few
feet from our house. My brother came out and moved the truck, he parked it
in front of our house. These kids wouldn’t leave, they just stayed on the
corner eying us. A couple of us, including me, went over to ask them what was
going on. We asked them if they were working for the cops and if they were
trying to provoke something. We made it clear who we are and what represent.
They remained belligerent and when we gave them information about who our
fight is with, what we’ve been through and gave them examples about the bombing,
Sean Bell, etc. they said things “we didn’t do it” and “what’s that got to
do with us”. We told them that they were getting belligerent with us if
the cops stopped them wouldn’t get loud with them. One of boys got on his cell
phone and told whoever he was talking to, to look under his bed and get his
“piece” and bring it to him”. We were out there about 45 minutes when the
cops came out, 2 cars and a wagon. This is extremely unusual because we live
in a university area and the university security as well as bike cops patrol
this area religiously to keep it a certain way for those students but while
all of this was going on there was not one cop or university person around.
We told the cops what happened, who we are and what our position was. Then
they talked to those kids. They never asked them for ID. and never responded
to us telling them how one boy had told somebody to bring him his gun. We
are very suspicious about this situation. We know this system is on the hot
seat about this parole issue and we also know that they would love to arrest
MOVE people out here on the street. If we had got into a fight with kids,
they would have arrested all of us and took our kids. We’re just letting people
know what’s going on because we think this was no random situation. We think
this government is trying to provoke something in order to justify this
parole decision and possibly arrest us. Keep your eyes and ears open---Ramona
WHO ARE THE MOVE 9? & Ramona Africa interview: "The MOVE 9 Trial"
Ramona Africa interview: "The MOVE 9 Trial"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C6lKLpkPsqc
and
http://www.onamove.com/move9/
WHO ARE THE MOVE 9?
The MOVE 9 are innocent men and women who have been in prison since August 8, 1978, following a massive police attack on us at our home in Powelton Village (Philadelphia). This was seven years before the government dropped a bomb on MOVE, killing 11 people, including 5 babies. The August 8, 1978 police attack on MOVE followed years of police brutality against MOVE and was a major military operation carried out by the Philadelphia police department under orders of then-mayor, Frank Rizzo, whose reputation for racism and brutality is well known; it followed him up thru the ranks of the police department to the police commissioner's office to the mayor's office. During this attack, heavy equipment was used to tear down the fence surrounding our home, and cops filled our home with enough tear gas to kill us and our babies, while SWAT teams covered every possible exit. We were all in the basement of our home, where we had 10 thousand pounds of water pressure per minute directed at us from 4 fire department water cannons (for a total of 40 thousand pounds of water pressure per minute). As the basement filled with nearly six feet of water we had to hold our babies and animals above the rising water so they wouldn't drown. Suddenly shots rang out (news reporters and others know the shots came from a house at 33rd and Baring St., not our home, because they actually saw the man shooting) and bullets immediately filled the air as police through-out the area opened fire on us. Officer James Ramp, who was standing above us on street-level and facing our home, was killed by a single bullet that struck him on a downward angle. This alone makes it impossible for MOVE to have killed Ramp, since we were below street level, in the basement. MOVE adults came out of the house carrying our children through clouds of tear gas, we were beat and arrested. Television cameras actually filmed the vicious beating of our brother Delbert Africa (3 of the 4 cops that beat Delbert went to trial on minor charges). Despite the photographic evidence, the trial judge (Stanley Kubacki) refused to let the jury render a verdict and himself acquitted the cops by directed order. Nine of us were charged with murder and related charges for the death of James Ramp. Within a few hours of our arrest, our home (which is supposed to be the "scene of the crime" and therefore evidence) was deliberately destroyed, demolished, by city officials when they were legally obligated to preserve all evidence, but we were held for trial anyway. We went to trial before Judge Edward Malmed who convicted all nine of us of third degree murder (while admitting that he didn't have "the faintest idea" who killed Ramp) and sentenced each of us to 30 - 100 years in prison. Judge Malmed also stated that MOVE people said we are a family so he sentenced us as a family; we were supposed to be on trial for murder, not for being a family. It is clear that the MOVE 9 are in prison for being committed MOVE members, not for any accusation of crime. Three other adults that were in the house on August 8th did not get the same treatment as those that this government knows are committed MOVE members. One had all charges dismissed against her in September of 1978 with the judge saying that there was no evidence that she was a committed MOVE member when the issue was supposed to be murder. The second one was held for trial but released on bail; she was acquitted. The third one was held for trial with no bail, convicted of conspiracy and given 10-23 years; she was paroled in 1994. It is obvious that everything depended on whether or not the courts thought it was dealing with a committed MOVE member, court decisions had nothing to do with the accusation of murder. It has been 25 years since the August 8, 1978 police attack on MOVE, 25 years of unjust of imprisonment, but despite the hardship of being separated from family-members, despite the grief over the murder of family-members (including babies), the MOVE 9 remain strong and loyal to our Belief, our Belief in Life, the Teaching of our Founder, JOHN AFRICA. We have an uncompromising commitment to our Belief, which is what makes us a strong unified family, despite all this government have done to break us up and ultimately exterminate us.
It will take a massive amount of public pressure to force this rotten corrupt government to release the MOVE 9 and all political prisoners----What can YOU do to add to the pressure?
WRITE THE MOVE 9 AT THE FOLLOWING ADDRESSES
Debbie Sims Africa #006307; Janet Hollaway Africa #006308 Janine Phillips Africa #6309
451 Fullerton Ave.
Cambridge Springs, PA. 16403-1238
William Phillips Africa #AM 4984; Delbert Orr Africa #AM 4985
1000 Follies Rd.
Dallas, PA. 18612
Michael Davis Africa #AM 4973; Charles Sims Africa #AM 4975
P.O. Box 244
Graterford, PA. 19426-0246
Edward Goodman Africa #AM 4974
301 Morea Rd.
Frackville, PA. 17932
CONTACT US THROUGH ANY OF THE FOLLOWING:
THE MOVE ORGANIZATION
P.O. Box 19709 Phila., PA. 19143
610 499-0979
[email protected]
and
Date: Sun, 7 Dec 1997 10:31:19 -0500
Sender: The African Global Experience <[email protected]>
From: Marpessa Kupendua <[email protected]>
Subject: !*WHO ARE THE MOVE 9?
To: [email protected]
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Who are the MOVE 9?
From Sis. Marpessa Kupendua, 7 December 1997
The MOVE 9 are innocent men and women who have been in prison since 1978, following a massive police assault on MOVE Headquarters in Powelton Village, Philadelphia (seven years before the gov't dropped a bomb on MOVE, killing 11 people, including 5 children).
MOVE's belief is in Life. MOVE members follow the teachings of their founder, *JOHN AFRICA*. MOVE members have an uncompromising committment to their belief. It is that commit- ment which makes them a strong, unified family despite years of hardship.
The August 8, 1978 assault on MOVE was a major military operation enacted by the Philadelphia Police Dept. under the direction of then-mayor Frank Rizzo. The assault followed years of police brutality against MOVE, Rizzo's reputation for racism and abuse of citizens is well documented.
During the assault, heavy equipment was used to tear down barricades surrounding the house, and police moved in while SWAT teams staked out every possible exit. MOVE members retreated to the basement, where they withstood fire hoses and water deluge guns. As the basement flooded, they held children and dogs above the rising water.
Suddenly shots rang out and bullets immediately filled the air as police throughout the area opened fire. Officer James Ramp was struck and killed by a single bullet.
MOVE adults came out of the house carrying their children through clouds of tear gas and were immediately taken into custody. MOVE never fired any shots and no MOVE members were arrested with any weapons. All were viciously beaten. TV cameras filmed police brutally beating and kicking Delbert Africa (Three of the four police were brought to trial and *ACQUITTED* despite irrefutable photographic evidence). The city bulldozed and leveled the house *immediately* that day, thereby destroying evidence.
The MOVE 9 were sentenced to 30-100 years *EACH* allegedly for the death of Officer James Ramp. Autospy reports show *clearly* that the bullet that hit Ramp travelled in a *downward* direction, MOVE members were in the basement of their house *below* the street making it ballistically imposssible for them to have fired the shot.
In reality, the MOVE 9 were sentenced *because* they were MOVE members. The murder charges were preposterous. Twelve adults were arrested; among them were two MOVE sympathizers who disavowed MOVE and were released. At a preliminary hearing, the judge told one, "There has been no evidence that you are a MOVE member" and let her go free. (Consuewella Dotson refused to disavow MOVE; she was tried separately and sentenced to 10-20 years. She was paroled in 1994 following steady public pressure.) (NOTE: Consuewella Doston Africa's two daughters were among the children murdered by the gov't bombing of MOVE people May 13, 1985.)
SUPPORT THE MOVE ORGANIZATION!
GET INVOLVED!
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For more information on the history of the MOVE Organization and steps YOU can take to support their ongoing struggle for the release of these INNOCENT people go to http://movellja.org, e-mail [email protected], or write P.O. Box 19709, Philadelphia, PA 19143.
Submitted by: Sis. Marpessa
http://afrikan.net
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http://www.hartford-hwp.com/archives/45a/117.html
see also
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MOVE
