The MOVE Crisis in Philadelphia: Extremist Groups and Conflict Resolution

by Hizkias Assefa, Paul Wahrhaftig (Contributor)

In 1985, police bombed the Philadelphia community occupied by members of the black counterculture group MOVE (short for “The Movement”).  What began fifteen years earlier as a neighborhood squabble provoked by conflicting lifestyles ended in the destruction of sixty-one homes and the death of eleven residents - five of them children.  Some 250 people were left homeless. Was this tragedy the only solution to the conflict?  Were John Africa and his morally and ecologically idealistic followers “too crazy” to negotiate with? 

The authors interviewed MOVE members and their neighbors, third-party intervenors, and representatives of the Philadelpia administration in the 1970s, and draw on their own knowledge of the field of dispute resolution.  More than simply describing a terrible event, they examine the dynamics of conflict, analyzing attempts at third-party mediation and the possibility of resolution without violence.  Their analytical approach provides insight into other major conflicts, such as the problems of perception and misperception in U.S. - Iranian relations. In an age when terrorism and hostage-taking are regular features on the six o’clock news, their questioning of traditional views on negotiation with “irrational” adversaries is especially important.

Genres: History, Nonfiction

184 pages, Paperback

First published February 20, 1988

About the author

Hizkias Assefa is a consultant in conflict resolution and assistant professor in the Graduate Program of LaRoche College, Pittsburgh, specializing in management and international affairs. He is also coauthor of a forthcoming book entitled Extremist Groups and Conflict Resolution―The MOVE Crisis in Philadelphia (1987).

Reviews

[Luna · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fairly detailed look at the MOVE crisis, from its first occurrence in the late 1970's to the bombing and destruction of several blocks by the city of Philadelphia, some years later. The authors don't adequately explore the context of MOVE at the time, including the Black Panther Party's impact on John Africa, or relationships between Black-led social movements and the police at this time. The portrayal of MOVE as an 'extremist' group is a stretch; their actions escalate in aggression in accordance with the violence of the state, but the police--who fire more than a hundred thousand rounds of ammunition into a residential home and then level 21 blocks--somehow escape being labeled 'extremist.' The authors do a decent job at presenting the city as complicit in failures of negotiations to hold out, but doesn't do very much to explore the interests of the two main parties (MOVE and the city) on a larger, structural scale. Instead, the book focuses mostly on the actions of the parties and their failures.

[Scott Benowitz · Rating 5 out of 5]

In 1972, a group of Philadelphia residents founded an organization which they'd named "MOVE."
"MOVE" was very difficult to define: some journalists have described MOVE as a civil rights advocacy organization, others have described them as having been modern day anarchists, and others have described them as having been a cult.
Regardless However one opts to define MOVE, certain facts about them are not disputed: During the 1970's, the members of MOVE lived in a house in the Powrlton Village neighborhood of Philadelphia, and their neighbors had made a number of noise complaints about them to the Philadelphia police. In 1978, the police had ordered the members of MOVE to vacate the house that they'd been living in. In August of 1978, the Philadelphia police had attempted to enforce the order to vacate, the members of MOVE refused to leave the house that they'd been occupying, within a few hours a shootout between the police and the members of MOVE occurred, and one Philadelphia police officer was killed.
There are numerous differing accounts of the details of the 1978 raid and the subsequent shootout. The Philadelphia police personnel who had been involved in the raid did not all agree on certain details of the shootout, and some of the members of MOVE provided differing accounts.
The members of MOVE who had not been sent to prison following the 1978 shootout occupied a house which was located in the Cobbs Creek neighborhood. And again, the lifestyle that they'd been living generated repeated noise complaints from their neighbors, and in May of 1985, the Photographer police raided the Cobbs Creek house that the members of MOVE had been occupying. The members of MOVE had fortified the roof of the house that they'd been occupying, so the Philadelphia police who were charged with entering the house used a small amount of dynamite to break through the fortifications that the members of MOVE had constructed on the rooftop.
Again, as had been the case with the 1978 shootout, the members of MOVE who survived the 1985 raid and the members of the Philadelphia police who had been conducting the raid provide differing accounts of the 1985 raid. It is not disputed that the dynamite which the police had used on the rooftop of the building started a fire which eventually spread, and many of the houses on the streets which are located in close proximity to the house that the members of MOVE had been living in had been located were destroyed by the fire. It is also not disputed that 11 people were killed during the course of the night during the May 1985 MOVE raid.
Since 1985,numerous journalists have written books about MOVE, and the 1985 raid, and there have also been a number of documentary films made about MOE and the events of the May 1985 raid.
Each of the books which have been written about the May 1985 MOVE raid analyze different aspects of MOVE, the environment in which MOVE had originally formed in 1972, the relationship between MOVE and the other residents of the neighborhoods that they'd been living in, and the details of the process by which the Philadelphia police had planned and executed the 1978 raid and the subsequent 1985 raid.
"The MOVE Crisis in Philadelphia: Extremist Groups and Conflict Resolution" is unique among the numerous books that have been published since 1985 about the MOVE raid insofar as the authors of this book use the 1985 MOVE raid as the basis for a discussion about the broader topics of extremist groups, de-escalation, and conflict resolution.
Many of the other books which have been written about MOVE, and the 1978 and 1985 raids analyze urban poverty in the 1970's, neighborhoods in which there are few opportunities for employment and few social programs. The books which other journalists have written about MOVE and the 2 raids examine police tactics, and how to conduct raids against suspected criminals without potentially endangering their neighbors.
"The MOVE Crisis in Philadelphia: Extremist Groups and Conflict Resolution" is interesting because Hizkias Assefa and Paul Wahrhafig discuss de-escalation in a manner which has implications for many of the political conflicts which are occurring throughout the world in the mid 2020's.
If you enjoy reading about urban poverty in the U.S. in the 1970's, extremist groups, police raids which go disastrously wrong, or issues which are directly relevant to modern conflict resolution, you will find this book very interesting. This book will also appeal to people who enjoy reading about Philadelphia history.

[Renee King · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a good primer on this piece of Philadelphia history.

An examination of events in 1978 that lead up to the Osage Avenue bombing in 1985, and the city's abject failure to settle the conflict and negotiate peace. Previously unknown to me was the number of community and neighborhood groups that were in play as mediators, both for and against the MOVE people. Offers many and varied reasons behind the failed negotiation strategies taken by the city and possible explanations for said failures.

Not a thorough review of the MOVEment, context around the kind of group that was MOVE, who or what was likely influential to MOVE at that time. The reader is not left with a clear picture as to what was happening with the group's inner workings or leadership, although the original mission and vision of the group seems to have been lost once the conflicts began to escalate. The authors do make clear that this small text was not written to be a comprehensive study of MOVE and Philadelphia's tragic response. It was originally intended as a report for the investigative commission on the events, and should be recognized as such. I recommend as a good place to start.

[Sharif · Rating 2 out of 5]

The MOVE group and the City of Philadelphia were the equivalent of two independent nations, complete with the struggle for power and human rights violations. After reading this, I do not feel this tragic history was captured well by the writers who focused more on details rather than perspectives and context.

The main issue in my mind was the inability of the participants to communicate. MOVE’s philosophy was so diametrically opposed to that of the other party, I felt the disputants were talking past each other instead of to one another. The city’s stance was positional thus confrontational, whereas, the neighborhood was focused on interested based issues. For this reason, I believe the key to a peaceful resolution always lie with the original parities (MOVE & the residents) rather that the escalated ones (the police department and city officials).

It is one of America's horrible tragedies that shouldn't be forgotten. We must learn from it and remember it, thus preventing it from ever being repeated.

[Izzy Senechal · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good introduction to the MOVE conflicts in Philadelphia, but skimming through some of the historical context left more questions than answers for me. I’m aware that the point of this book is to examine what went wrong in conflict intervention efforts between MOVE and the city of Philadelphia, but still… Why didn’t the authors mention that founder John Africa was killed in the Osage Avenue bombing in 1995? What motivated some MOVE members to betray their revolutionary brethren to the police? Why did MOVE, which was originally integrated, become primarily black over time? What is the contemporary situation with MOVE’s activity? Did any city officials receive punishment for authorizing and executing the bombing, which killed 11, including 4 children? I just have a LOT of questions I wish the authors had expanded on.

[George Kasnic · Rating 5 out of 5]

I purchased this book to examine what I did not know about the MOVE crisis in Philadelphia.

The book delivers solidly as a history of what happened, both in 1978 and 1985. In bringing the protagonists to life, I found myself reevaluating my thoughts on what happened. The authors do an excellent job of presenting MOVE, and it becomes apparent they were a revolutionary movement, not a criminal one.

The parallel theme of the book is certainly conflict resolution. This is also well done. That MOVE was treated as a criminal rather than revolutionary organization is where the failure of this conflict’s resolution lies. Misdiagnosing your opponent and applying the incorrect tools leads to tragic outcomes.

A worthwhile read for both themes.

[Alesia · Rating 5 out of 5]

really interesting to see how local government took conflict resolution steps to handle these terrorists.

[Mary Ann Kierych · Rating 3 out of 5]

Informati it not an easy read for the average person because of all the details

[Black Bibliophile · Rating 3 out of 5]

Definitely want to read more on this topic

[Margaret · Rating 3 out of 5]

Unlike much of what I have read about the MOVE conflict, Assefa emphasized the context for the conflict and explored in depth relations among MOVE, neighbors and the city. The book is written as a case study of conflict resolution, but it is also a good way in to the MOVE conflict.

[Kipi (the academic stitcher) · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good book for seeing the processes we are talking about in class played out in real life, but not one I would recommend for pleasure reading.