1996-2000

MOVE 9 Begin Parole Eligibility

• All denied multiple times
• Serve far longer than typical third-degree murder sentences
• Advocacy continues for release

1998

First MOVE 9 Death in Prison

• Merle Austin Africa dies in prison
• Had served 20 years of 30-100 year sentence
• Cause: complications from untreated medical conditions

2000-2012

Continuing Incarceration

• MOVE 9 continue serving time
• Repeated parole denials
• Advocates argue political nature of extended sentences

September 28, 2013

Birdie Africa Dies

• Michael Moses Ward, the child survivor, dies at age 41
• Cause officially “undetermined”
• Friends cite trauma, health issues from bombing
• Only child to survive the fire; did not survive its aftermath

Why This Matters: The bombing didn’t just kill eleven people on May 13, 1985. It killed Birdie Africa twenty-eight years later. It killed Merle Africa in prison. It’s still killing – trauma, incarceration, institutional violence doesn’t end when the fire goes out.

2018-2021: MOVE 9 Releases Begin

2018

First Releases After 40 Years

• Debbie Sims Africa – released after 40 years
• Michael Davis Africa – released after 40 years
• Both now in their 60s
• Must rebuild lives after four decades in prison

2019

Two More Released

• Janet Holloway Africa – released after 41 years
• Janine Phillips Africa – released after 41 years

2020

Two More Gain Freedom

• Charles Sims Africa – released after 41 years
• Delbert Orr Africa – released after 42 years

Status 2020:

• Six of nine released
• Two deceased in prison
• One remains incarcerated: Edward Goodman Africa

Why This Matters: They went in young. They came out old. Forty years for third-degree murder when typical sentences max at twenty. Forty years for a death many believe was police crossfire. They didn’t bomb anyone. They didn’t drop explosives on children. But they served longer than officials who did.

2020-2021: The Remains Scandal

April 2021

Investigative Reporting Reveals Scandal

• Philadelphia Inquirer and Philadelphia Magazine investigation
• Discovers human remains of MOVE children held by universities
• Remains of Tree Africa and Delisha Africa used without family consent

Timeline of Remains:

• 1985: Medical Examiner performs autopsies
• Unknown date: Remains transferred to University of Pennsylvania Museum
• 2001: Penn Museum transfers remains to Princeton University anthropologist Janet Monge
• 2001-2019: Monge uses remains in forensic anthropology courses
• 2019: Monge features remains in online Coursera course “Real Bones: Adventures in Forensic Anthropology”
• Thousands of students view children’s remains
• Families never notified, never consented

April-May 2021

Public Outrage

• MOVE families learn of remains use through media
• Community erupts in anger
• Protests at Penn Museum and Princeton
• Questions: How could elite universities do this? Who authorized it? Why didn’t anyone ask families?

May 2021

Institutional Response

• Penn Museum issues apology; admits failure
• Princeton issues apology
• Professor Monge placed on administrative leave
• Later resigns from Princeton
• Penn Museum removes MOVE-related exhibit materials

July 2021

Remains Finally Returned

• After intense family pressure, remains repatriated
• Private ceremonies held
• Families describe decades of compounded trauma
• “Continued violence” against victims

Why This Matters: Thirty-six years. That’s how long it took for Tree and Delisha to rest. Thirty-six years of their bodies being studied, photographed, shown to thousands of students. Without permission. Without consent. Without basic human dignity. Because even in death, even as children, they weren’t seen as worthy of respect. The bombing didn’t end in 1985. The disrespect continued in museums and universities. Institutional racism isn’t just police with bombs. It’s professors with bones.