Penn Museum discovers another set of human remains from the MOVE bombing
An ongoing inventory uncovered more unaccounted remains believed to be those of 12-year-old Delisha Africa.
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FILE - In this May, 1985 file photo, scores of row houses burn in a fire in the west Philadelphia neighborhood. Police dropped a bomb on the militant group MOVE's home on May 13, 1985 in an attempt to arrest members, leading to the burning of scores of homes in the neighborhood. (AP Photo/File)
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The Penn Museum has discovered additional human remains in its possession associated with the 1985 MOVE bombing in West Philadelphia.
The remains are believed to be those of 12-year-old Delisha Africa, who was one of five children and six adults killed as Philadelphia police firebombed the Africa house during a standoff.
They were discovered during a comprehensive inventory that the museum conducted of its Biological Anthropology Section to prepare thousands of artifacts, some dating back more than a century, to be moved into upgraded storage facilities.
In a statement, the museum said it is not known how this set of MOVE remains were separated from the rest, and it notified the Africa family immediately upon the discovery.
The human remains recovered from the destroyed house on Osage Street were turned over to the Penn Museum for analysis as part of an investigation. In 2021, some of those remains were discovered to still remain at the museum, used as instructional material by an anthropologist at both Penn Museum and Princeton University, which led to protests.
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Listen 1:20Those remains were ultimately returned to the Africa family, at which time Penn Museum apologized and promised to conduct an ongoing comprehensive inventory of its biological anthropology section.
According to a statement by the Penn Museum, another set of previously unaccounted for remains were discovered on Nov. 12 which are believed to be those of Delisha Africa.
“We are committed to full transparency with respect to any new evidence that may emerge,” Penn Museum wrote on its website. “Confronting our institutional history requires ever-evolving examination of how we can uphold museum practices to the highest ethical standards. Centering human dignity and the wishes of descendant communities govern the current treatment of human remains in the Penn Museum’s care.”
The Africa family could not immediately be reached for comment.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
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