Aspirations Of Statehood And Race: Marcus Garvey, Black Nationalism, And The Shaky Rhetoric Of Unity

Marcus Garvey was one of the largest speakers in the Harlem Renaissance Movement, and he represented the black nationalist movement during that era. However, he was also a political theorist who was very interested in international movements. His interest in these movements led to various attempts to get those movements and other nationalist entities on his side. Among these were the Irish Independence Movement, Zionist Movement, and the Japanese nation. However, Garvey was never able to fully realize these planned alliances because of the complexity that race and racialization played in his larger ideology. When faced with the successes of other movements, Garvey continually reevaluated their movements through race and was unable to continue the alliances that he had attempted to build. This dichotomy is seen in how Garvey’s rhetoric developed over the course of his career.