BLACKNET

Born into poverty on August 17, 1887 Marcus Garvey grew up showing great talent in writing and public speaking. His claim to fame was the specific view he had to lead the Negroes to a prominent life in America. His belief, summed up in two words, was "Black Chauvinism." This meant he thought to be fully successful the African American community must totally separate themselves from the white community and create their own homeland in America. This included starting Negro owned businesses, abandoning the feeling of inferiority, and beginning their own culture in America. This is what was meant by the statement "Back to Africa." Marcus did not want any kind of relations with the white man (total exclusion), he felt that this was the only way the African Americans could rise from oppression.

Marcus, who in 1914 founded the Universal Negro Improvement Association (UNIA), transferred the headquarters to New York City in 1916. This association's purpose was to create unity among the African American People. By 1919 the association grew to two million in number and was found in many cities. He spread his philosophy through a weekly newspaper called Negro World. Garvey also established a Black Star Line, which connected America to many of the Black areas of the world especially in the Caribbean, and established the Negro Factories Corporation to aid in the beginning of Negro-owned Businesses. His "political career" reached its pinnacle when he was elected President of the African Republic (a government in exile) at the UNIA international convention in New York.

His fame came to an end in 1923 when he was found guilty of mail fraud and was sentenced to five years in jail. He started serving his sentence in 1925. In 1927 President Coolidge commuted his sentence and he was deported back to his birth land of Jamaica.