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MY'STORY

The MOVE Fire

This is a personal recollection on the Move fire on May 13, 1985 Philadelphia police fired thousands of rounds at the MOVE house, city officials approved dropping an explosive device on the roof, the resulting fire was allowed to burn, 11 people—including five children—died, and 61 homes were destroyed. Philadelphia City Council later called it a “brutal attack carried out by the City of Philadelphia on its own citizens” and acknowledged that no individual faced criminal consequences for the bombing. One timeline correction worth preserving for the BHP record: the major previous MOVE-police confrontation was August 8, 1978, about seven years before the bombing, not a year or two earlier. Officer James Ramp was killed, other police and firefighters were wounded, nine MOVE members were later convicted, and television cameras recorded police beating Delbert Africa during his arrest. The 1985 MOVE Commission later specifically criticized city planners for failing to adequately use lessons from that 1978 confrontation. And that actually strengthens the point you’re making: 1985 did not happen without precedent or institutional memory. There had already been a deadly confrontation with MOVE, years of conflict, negotiations and police involvement before Osage Avenue.

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BLACK FACTS
The Truths They Never Taught You...

Katherine Johnson — Mathematics to the Moon

Katherine Johnson’s mathematical calculations helped guide some of America’s most important early space missions while she confronted the racial and gender barriers faced by Black women in twentieth-century America.

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BHP gathered finds from its connected research sources. Showing the 4 strongest Black History matches.
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NMAAHC

Motor Booty Affair

Date
1978
Description
A 33 1/3 rpm record album titled, Motor Booty Affair, by Parliament-Funkadelic. This object is comprised of a vinyl disc (a) of the long-playing record, a gate-fold album cover (b), and a paper sleeve (c).
2015.172.28a: A vinyl record from the 33 1/3 rpm record album titled, Motor Booty Affair, by Parliament-Funkadelic. The vinyl record has a circular label at the center with black text. At the top of the label is the logo for Casablanca Record and FilmWorks, Inc., in orange to red gradient text resembling a neon sign. Below is a color illustration of a desert scene with a small casbah with domed roofed buildings and a minaret. Outside of the Kasbah’s main gates, on either side, is a film crew with cameras and other film equipment and two men on camels. Just above the center hole is the record title, [MOTOR BOOTY AFFAIR], printed in black text. To the left of the center hole is the release number printed in black text that reads [NBLP 7125] with the side number. Below the center hole is the band name and the track names. The tracks on Side 1 include: [MR. WIGGLES], [RUMPOFSTEELSKIN], [(YOU'RE A FISH AND I'M A) WATER SIGN], and [AQUA BOOGIE (A PSYCHOALPHADISCOBETABIOAQUADOLOP)]. Side 2 is identical to Side 1. The tracks on Side 2 include: [ONE OF THOSE FUNKY THANGS], [LIQUID SUNSHINE], [MOTOR-BOOTY AFFAIR], and [DEEP]. At the bottom of the label is the logo for Thang, Inc., producer credits, copyright information, and manufacturer and distribution in formation.
2015.172.28b: A gate-fold album cover from the 33 1/3 rpm record album titled, Motor Booty Affair, by Parliament-Funkadelic. The front of the album cover is primarily off-white with a colored, crosshatched illustration of a giant yellow bird with its mouth open about to scoop up the character “Sir Noze D'Voidoffunk.” Sir Nose is depicted in a white suit with a cape and white fedora with a black band. He is depicted standing with his back to the bird. Sir Nose has a very long, extended nose, his eyes are squeezed shut, and his hands are covering his ears. Below Sir Nose’s proper left foot is the artist’s autograph, [Overton Loyd ‘98]. In the top left corner of the jacket is the name of the band, [PARLIAMENT], printed in red and yellow disjointed text and outlined in a thick light blue. Below is the name of the album, [Motor Booty Affair], with the first letters of each word, [M], [B], and [A], drawn as illustrations of women’s nude legs and with their red panty covered backsides. The left and right interior covers open to a full illustration of a futuristic aquatic scene in the album’s fictionalized Atlantis. Along the bottom edge is a crowd of people and aquatic lifeforms with just their raised hands, fins, and claws visible. Just left of center in the crowd are webbed feet hovering upside down in the water. At the center is a blue banner with white text that reads, [WE GOT TA / RAISE / ATLANTIS / TO THE / TOP]. Below the banner is an illustration of a lobster with its claws upraised. The lobster’s proper left claw is holding a conductor’s baton. The character “Queen Freakaleen” is depicted riding a creature that is half elephant/half fish. Above her are the two characters “Monkey Sea Monkey Woo,” and below her are the characters “Octave Pussy” and “Rita Mermaid.” In the bottom right corner is a large flying saucer hovering over the crowd below. Below the saucer, in the bottom right corner, Sir Noze. He has his proper left hand covering his proper left ear and his proper right fist is raised with his index finger pointing upwards towards the flying saucer. Above the saucer are illustrations of two large, yellow birds with their mouths wide open and various fish, sharks, and outline of other flying saucers. Above many of the fish are speech bubbles. Attached to the center fold is a cardboard punch out/stand up of the city of Atlantis and cardboard punch out/stand up figures of the characters “Octave Pussy,” “Rita Mermaid,” “Mr. Wiggles,” “Howard Codsell,” “Minus Mouf,” “P-Nut Booty Jellyfish,” “Giggles,” “Squirm,” T.R.T (The Real Thing) McLean,” “Monkey Sea Monkey Woo,” and “Queen Freakaleen.” The back of the album cover is also primarily off-white. The cover is dominated by a large illustration of a stylized, fish-shaped, gold submarine hovering over a body of water. One of the submarine’s fins is a loudspeaker with musical notes hovering around it to represent blaring music. There is a stream of people walking up a stepped ramp into the submarine. At the back of the line are three women depicted in detail. Two women are wearing blue shorts and tube tops. The third wears blue, low cut skirt, and a blue and pink crop top with a raised collar. A woman with webbed feet, wearing a red swimsuit with black stripes swims above them. In the bottom right corner is a man in a white bodysuit, starfish necklace, pink sunglasses, and a white cowboy hat holding a futuristic weapon to his chest. In the top left corner is a listing of Sides 1 and 2 tracks. In the top right corner is producer credits. In the bottom left corner is black text that reads [Hear Now See Lay-Da! / A Soundtrack from a Motion Picture Underwater.], a reproduced signature of the artist that reads [OVERTON LOYD 78 / “Come in and go down”], the Casablanca logo, and copyright marks for Thang, Inc. and Casablanca Record and FilmWorks, Inc. And in the bottom right corner is the patent information, legal disclaimers, and manufacturing and distribution information.
2015.172.28c: A paper sleeve from the 33 1/3 rpm record album titled, Motor Booty Affair, by Parliament-Funkadelic. The front of the paper sleeve features a photograph of George Clinton riding a pair of dolphins, set against a sea background. He’s wearing a white shirt, white fringed vest, wooly chaps, a red kerchief tied around his neck, and a tan, ten-gallon hat. He holds a rope tied around one of the dolphin’s neck in his proper right hand and a large boombox on his shoulder and with his proper left hand. The story of Sir Nose is printed in the top left corner. The back is off-white with blue text that includes the track listings, credits, and three illustrations. The illustration on the left is of the character “Mr. Wiggles.” At the center is a red starfish character “Rock Starfish.” And the third illustration, on the right, is of the character “Duke Minusdagroove.”
See more items in
National Museum of African American History and Culture Collection
Classification
Record Albums
Movement
Afrofuturism
Credit Line
Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture
Data Source
National Museum of African American History and Culture
Object number
2015.172.28abc
Type
record covers
long-playing records
Restrictions & Rights
© 1978 Thang, Inc
Permission required for use. Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.
Medium
(2015.172.28a): vinyl with ink on paper
(2015.172.28b): ink on cardboard
(2015.172.28c): ink on paper
Dimensions
Diameter (a. vinyl disc): 11 7/8 in. (30.2 cm)
H x W (b. cardboard jacket): 12 5/16 × 12 1/4 in. (31.3 × 31.1 cm)
H x W (c. paper sleeve): 11 7/8 × 12 in. (30.2 × 30.5 cm)
Title
Title • Motor Booty Affair
Record ID
nmaahc_2015.172.28abc
Museum
NMAAHC
Title Sort
MOTOR BOOTY AFFAIR
Source
National Museum of African American History and Culture
Metadata Usage
CC0
Date
1970s
Geo Location
City • Washington • State • District of Columbia • Country • United States • Continent • North and Central America • City • Los Angeles • State • California
Online Media Type
Images
Online Media Rights
Use Restricted

Source: National Museum of African American History and Culture, Smithsonian Institution. Rights and restrictions shown above are supplied by the Smithsonian record.

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TOPIC OF THE DAY

Greenwood / Black Wall Street

Before the 1921 destruction of Tulsa’s Greenwood District, Black residents had created a remarkable center of business and community life. The district included stores, professional offices, entertainment venues and homes owned by Black citizens. Understanding Greenwood means learning what was built—not only what was burned.

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TRIVIA QUESTION OF THE DAY

Which Supreme Court case ruled state-sponsored public-school segregation unconstitutional?

Brown v. Board of Education in 1954.