Influence of Marcus Garvey

Recently, my Oakland Freedom School class watched, "Influence of Marcus Garvey." This documentary, available free on You Tube, about the life of Pan-African leader Marcus Garvey is a great resource to educate people on his life.

Marcus Garvey, founder of the Universal Negro Improvement Association (UNIA) is responsible for the creation of the beautiful Pan African flag, or "Red Black & Green" flag.

Garvey was a journalist and printer by trade. He published the Negro World newspaper, an international Black newspaper that was printed in three languages. Eventually, it was banned in African "colonies" by Europeans, due to its potency.

His UNIA claimed four million members. His parades in Harlem were splendid. Unlike other Negro (or colored) leaders at the time, Garvey was interested in a mass movement of the people. Not just a "talented tenth." This brought him at odds with W.E.B. DuBois. The two had a nasty feud, played out in the Black Press (including the Negro World, and DuBois and the NAACP's "The Crisis").

I remember my brotha Ise Lyfe, during his "Are we crazy?" presentation pointed out how many high school youth could identify a ski-masked wearing image of Plies (the rapper), but were unable to recognize Marcus Garvey. We must teach the youth.

The Influence of Marcus Garvey: Part 1


The Influence of Marcus Garvey: Part 2


The Influence of Marcus Garvey: Part 3


The Influence of Marcus Garvey: Part 4


The video was a great way to introduce people to Garvey's work, "Africa for the Africa," the power of organization, the real definition of "snitching" vis-a-vie J. Edgar Hoover's information/provocature's like "800" and, of course Pan-Africanism and economics.

Shown at Oakland Freedom School, July 27.

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