38:00. video. 2010

Joined By Divisions

Perhaps the most iconic image of the rift between the Philadelphia community and the police was the MOVE bombing in 1985. MOVE is a radical activist group in Philadelphia that lives communally and is comprised mostly of people of color from low income neighborhoods in Philadelphia. Years of controversial confrontations with the city resulted in the city dropping a bomb on their house which killed 11 men, women, and children and destroyed more than 61 homes in the process. The incident famously occurred under the watch of Philadelphia’s first African-American mayor, Wilson Goode. The film brings the story into the present day by following the shooting death of the former mayor’s nephew, Timothy “Tee” Goode, at the hands of the police. Taking place on one summer day in 2008, the film follows the unlikely alliance of MOVE member Pam Africa and Timothy’s mother Pamela Goode as they confront the 39th police district over the shooting. The complex intertwining pasts of the people and places coming together on that one day form inroads into many stories and discussions on the complicated history of the police and community relationship in Philadelphia.

Produced for and funded by MiND TV “Philadelphia Stories” Series 7.

Editor: Valerie Keller
Music/Sound Design: Jeff Lorenz
Additional Cinematography by: Jon Boal and Andrew David Watson.
Production Assistants: Scott Ross, Bailey Goldenbaum, Loretta Gary, and Karl Beyer.