More on Marcus Garvey

Ovington, Mary W. "On Marcus Garvey." The Portable Harlem Renaissance Reader. Ed. David L. Lewis. New York: Viking Penguin, 1994. 29-33. Print.

After reading Ovington’s article about Marcus Garvey, my views on the man have changed somewhat. I had originally pictured him as an intelligent man who was simply misguided towards what I feel is a disastrous and hypocritical route. After reading Ovington’s article, I now feel that Marcus Garvey was something far worse: a stupid egomaniac. I don’t use the word “stupid” here for emphasis, as a child might, but for its literal meaning – I believe that the man was an idiot who had no idea what he was doing.

In Ovington’s own words, “business training had not been a part of Marcus Garvey’s education”. (31) Why, then, in all the ways of the world, did Garvey decide to create a corporation around his plan to form an African empire? And, given that he did, why did he not seek guidance in business and finances? Or, at the very least, why didn’t he pick up an Accounting 101 textbook and at least know that liquidating debts accrued prior to incorporation with profit made after incorporation is a serious crime? How is it that so many self-made ignorant people are in such high positions in this country? It drives me crazy. What’s more, Ovington points out that Garvey had no real knowledge of Africa, and never specified a location in which to house his imaginary new empire. How can you conceive of a new country without even knowing the location in which it will be housed?

Not only was he ignorant and chose to remain so, he was racist – perhaps as racist against whites as many whites were against him. What kind of man, black, white, or whatever color, administers a policy that refuses to accept help from willing people of a different race? According to Ovington, Garvey would not accept donations or support from white people, nor would he let whites into meetings of his organization. The obvious message here is a sort of “you pushed me so now I’m gonna push you”. It’s childish, and, furthermore, it’s destructive. If Garvey really wanted to make an African empire, he had to have known something about global economics, or that when you have your own country you are going to need to have good relations with other countries – particularly countries that are far more wealthy and powerful than you, even if you don’t like their color. But no, Garvey didn’t do anything to help his position in the eyes of white people, instead choosing to alienate himself and his organization.

I also called Garvey an egomaniac, and again I did not use the word merely as an insult. The description of him riding into Liberty Hall clad in gold and brass on the back of a horse while flanked by his “knights” and “nobility” is disgusting. Garvey was not a proponent of racial equality – he was a proponent of himself, and nothing more. I can honestly say that, after reading this article, I am glad his promises were hollow; an African empire led by Garvey would have become a huge, horrible problem that the rest of the world would have had to have cleaned up.