User:Mikeafricajr

Mike Africa, Jr. is a member of The MOVE Organization, and the Black Philly Radical Collective. He is a film director, producer, writer, hip hop artist motivational resilience speaker... He pushes his “Never Give Up” message with his dynamic stage performances mixing music in his orations. Mike is the son of two political prisoners Mike Sr. and Debbie Africa who were each sentenced to 100 years in prison for the death of a Philadelphia police officer in a 1978 police raid on MOVE’s home. Mike was secretly born in a Philadelphia prison following the police raid. As an infant, he was taken from his mother and placed in an orphanage where he was physically and mentally abused for 11 days before getting rescued by his aunt. At age 6, he witnessed the smoke in the air from a police bomb that was dropped on his family’s home killing his great-uncle, John Africa his cousin Frank Africa and nine members of his family, including five of the children he suffered in the orphanage with. At age 13, Mike began using his music to raise awareness about his experiences to gain justice for his family and others. Mike‘s mission is to tell his incredible story while inspiring others with his powerful message. Mike has shared many stages with activists and celebrities such as Marc Lamont Hill, Tarana Burke, Ramona Africa, Dead Prez, Danny Glover, Michael Franti, Public Enemy, Rage Against the Machine and countless others, tackling issues such as mass incarceration, police brutality, climate change and many other profound issues of the day. Mike is the sole owner of The “Mike Africa Junior Information Company” (MAJIC) is a multi-faceted entertainment brand created by Mike and his team that hosts educational entertainment in music, podcast, documentaries... with the mission to tell his and his family’s story. In 2018 with the legal help of attorneys Brad Thomson from People’s Law Office out of Chicago and Bret Grote from Abolitionists Law Center out of Pittsburgh, Mike finally got his parents free from prison after 40 years of imprisonment. In 2020 HBO released the film “40 Years A Prisoner” produced by Tommy Oliver about Mike’s quest to free his parents.