Marcus Garvey family seeks justice

Marcus Garvey family seeks justice

Dr. Marcus Garvey, New York surgeon and son of civil rights leader and Jamaica’s first National Hero, the Rt. Hon Marcus Mosiah Garvey presented his case for justice for his father to the CARICOM Caucus of Ambassadors and embassy staff in Washington DC on Tuesday Sept. 6.

The meeting arranged by Dr. Goulda Downer, chair of the Caribbean-American Political Action (C-PAC) and was held at the Organization of American States (OAS) in Washington DC. During the meeting, the group learned first hand about the family’s campaign to seek justice for Garvey through a posthumous presidential pardon and how the Caribbean, through our shared history as a region, can play a critical leadership role in this effort.

In speaking to the group, Dr. Garvey shared some of his father’s visionary insights, which led him to be the civil rights icon he was. He also shared a brief history of the injustice his father experienced and why this pardon meant so much to him and his family.

The appeal for this pardon is on the grounds that Marcus Garvey was unjustly prosecuted. Garvey’s charges and conviction effectively ended his political movement and eventually led to his deportation to Jamaica, his country of birth. The family, 93 years later, now seeks justice for Marcus Garvey with their campaign to have his charges exonerated.

The Garvey’s legal team is asserting his conviction was a) Motivated by a desire on the part of the federal government to discredit, disrupt and destroy Garvey’s civil rights movement; b) Executed through court surveillance and deception, with undercover agents posting as Garvey supporters and c) Aided by judicial proceedings that have been condemned as factually unsound and politically and racially motivated.

Caribbean leaders are asked to encourage citizens in all countries to sign the time-sensitive White House petition link at https://wh.gov/iLvaQ by Tuesday, Sept. 27, 2016. The immediate goal is to collect the 100,000 signatures by that day and present them to the White House and in so doing insure a response from President Obama on this request. The website, www.Justice4garvey.org provides additional information about the effort. Organizations and groups are also encouraged to complete and submit a sign-on letter which is housed at the site.