Marcus Garvey, Garveyism & the UNIA
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Welcome to Liberation Philosophy Level 1, Lesson 2: Marcus Garvey, Garveyism & the UNIA
In this lesson, you will learn about:
Marcus Garvey and what shaped his politics
Garvey’s impact on Black people all over the globe
Self-sufficiency
Global Black organisation
Objectives
At the end of this lesson you will understand:
How Garvey influenced pan-African politics and African revolutionary leaders
The organisational power of a pan-African movement before the internet
The meaning of the colours of the pan-African flag
What the Black Star Line was
What consequences Garvey faced for advocating for Black people
Marcus Mosiah Garvey was a Jamaican pan-Africanist and a key figure in Black political history. His philosophy and politics went on to shape many Black revolutionaries and social movements. One of the most brilliant speakers and thinkers of the 20th century, his organisational skills were unparalleled.
Marcus Garvey was involved in politics from an early age. He read the works of Black historians such as Edward Wilmot Blyden and studied revolutionary figures such as Toussaint L’Ouverture. In 1910 at 23 years old, he travelled across the globe. Journeying through the Caribbean, Central America and Europe, he realised Black people the world over faced the same problems. He returned to Jamaica with the goal of starting a Black movement.
He founded the Universal Negro Improvement Association (UNIA) in July 1914 to improve the condition of Black people all over the globe. He embraced the philosophy of pan-Africanism and worked towards unifying the entire Black world.
Over a year after forming the UNIA, Garvey travelled to the US. Living in Harlem during a time known as the “Harlem Renaissance”, he had a profound impact on the minds of Black people in America. It was during this time that Garvey refined his politics.
His movement centred Africa in the minds of Black people worldwide, educating them of their homeland and its importance. He called for the creation of an economic power base for Black people in Africa, as he realised without this, Black people could not determine their own political affairs.
“We are determined to solve our own problems, by redeeming our Motherland Africa from the hands of alien exploiters and found there a Government, a nation of our own, strong enough to lend protection to the members of our race scattered all over the world...” declared Garvey.
He advocated for Black migration back to Africa, for complete self-reliance and, most importantly, for Black people to put their race first. This was Garveyism, a branch of pan-Africanism. In Garvey’s own words: “In a world of wolves one should go armed, and one of the most powerful defensive weapons within the reach of Negroes is the practice of race first in all parts of the world”
At its height, the UNIA had 6 million members, decades before mobile phones and the internet had been invented! There were 900 branches throughout the USA, across the Caribbean, Africa, South America and Europe. His movement was so profound that even places with a relatively small Black population such as Wales had UNIA branches. No social justice movement since has come close.
The UNIA also generated employment for thousands of Black people. Garvey and his first wife, Amy Ashwood Garvey, began their own newspaper called the Negro World and distributed it globally. The paper contained information about the experiences of Black people all over the globe, the truth about white supremacy, the politics necessary for liberation, and the importance of self-love. Photographs of Black women were regularly printed and beauty contests were sponsored by the paper in an effort to bolster self-esteem and self-love.
Economics was a major aspect of Garvey’s politics, and he developed the Black Star Line, a shipping company for Black passengers, Black seamen and the transport of goods between Black people worldwide. The company was completely owned and funded by the members of the UNIA and co-directed by Amy Ashwood Garvey. Although there were only 4 ships, the Line was an attempt to realise economic independence and to forge a physical connection between Africa and the diaspora.
Garvey also developed the pan-African flag, reinforcing the principles of a unified Black nation. The colours of the flag were red, black and green. Red for the blood of the ancestors and the blood that unites all Africans, black for the race of the people, and green for the abundant natural wealth of Africa.
The most important aspect of Garveyism and the UNIA was complete self-sufficiency. The movement was 6 million strong and did not involve nor rely on any other group of people. This meant it was able to utilise its resources for Black people and tackle the problems of racism/white supremacy head-on.
Garvey, however, was not without his opponents. Over the years he developed a fierce rivalry with W.E.B. Du Bois, a Black scholar from the US. Du Bois disagreed with Garveyism, and disagreement eventually turned into hatred. Du Bois would often attack Garvey’s appearance and make accusations about him that weren’t true. Garvey also had problems with the Communist Party of the USA, who saw racism as a minor issue compared to classism. They infiltrated the UNIA on several occasions, attempting to lure members to their party.
His main opponent, however, was the US government. J. Edgar Hoover, who later became the head of the FBI, was tasked with bringing down the Garvey movement. Hoover, an open white supremacist, would later target Malcolm X, Martin Luther King and the Black Panther Party while the FBI’s director. Garvey was imprisoned on the bogus charge of mail fraud and Amy Jacques Garvey, his second wife, assumed leadership of the UNIA. Eventually, with support from Du Bois, the NAACP and the communists, the US government deported Garvey.
Garvey's politics of self-sufficiency led to him being banned from not just the USA, but a number of countries including Jamaica, the country of his birth. His promotion of a Black unity that transcends borders and nationality was deemed very dangerous to the white governments of the world. Garvey championed the cause of “Africa for Africans, at home and abroad” until his death in 1940.
Garvey was incredibly influential. Many African and Caribbean independence movements emerged directly from UNIA branches, and others were heavily inspired by him. Many of the flags of Africa and the Caribbean carry an element of Garveyism. For example, the flag of Ghana has a black star, dedicated to Garvey’s Black Star Line. Malcolm X’s father was also a Garveyite who preached “back to Africa” across the USA.
One of the most fascinating things about Garvey was his ability to navigate a world that was still under direct white colonial rule. He built an international business and a global movement at a time when Black people were legally banned from entering the same spaces as white people - even within their own countries! Garvey’s revolutionary politics are the template for the development of a pan-African movement today.