RESPECT Garvey: Jamaica’s First National Hero
National Heroes’ Day will be celebrated in Jamaica on October
21, 2013, at various locations in Jamaica and the diaspora.
Among the heroes to be honored will be the Right Honorable
Marcus Mosiah Garvey, Jamaica’s First National Hero. This is only fitting. Marcus Garvey was the first of the modern Jamaican heroes to propose the idea of
nationhood, and in his seminal work, The Philosophy and Opinions of Marcus Garvey, he outlined the values which have been at the core of the RESPECT Garvey campaign:
Redemption, Education, Self-Reliance, Purpose, Entrepreneurship, Community and
Tradition.
Yet despite Garvey’s enormous contributions to Jamaica,
Central, South, and North America, Africa, Britain and the Commonwealth,
which have been acknowledged by leaders such as Dr.
Martin Luther King, Jr., Malcolm
X, Kwame
Nkrumah, and Jomo
Kenyatta, Marcus Garvey is still regarded
as a felon by the Department of Justice in the United States of America.
Where is the outrage regarding the disrespect of Garvey and
his legacy? Why have we allowed our National Hero to be dishonored for so
long?
Could it be that we are lacking the pride and respect that Garvey
tried to instill in Africans at home and abroad?
The Coalition for the Exoneration of Marcus Garvey is petitioning Senator Bill Nelson, Representative Frederica Wilson, and the Congress of the United States of America for the exoneration of Marcus Garvey:
http://www.causes.com/actions/1722148-urge-congress-to-exonerate-civil-rights-leader-marcus-garvey
We are also petitioning President Barack Obama to exonerate Marcus Garvey:
http://signon.org/sign/exonerate-marcus-garvey?source=c.url&r_by=4631897
Thank you for your support.
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