November 2, 2025

New on TikTok: Why I do what I do Over the years working as a middle school teacher, professor at Miami Dade College, and poet in the schools across Dade County, I have seen what the educational system has done to our children, and it is heartbreaking. Many arrive bright and eager to learn but soon begin to doubt the value of their own voices. The lessons reward repetition over reflection. The tests measure obedience, not imagination. By the time they graduate, too many have been taught to mistrust their own brilliance. During those years, I tried to bring something different into the room. I introduced students to Marcus Garvey, Bob Marley, and other Black heroes whose ideas carried power and pride. I wanted them to meet minds that looked and sounded like theirs, to know that intellect and beauty are not borrowed. I remember the silence that followed when Garvey’s words landed for the first time: “None but ourselves can free the mind.” You could feel the shift. It was small, but it mattered. Now that I am retired, I have made a promise to continue that work in a new way. The classroom has expanded. The chalkboard has become a camera lens and a keyboard. Through The Garvey Classroom, I use the tools of writing, poetry, and social media to reach our people wherever they are. My goal is the same as it was on the first day I taught: to help our children and our communities remember who they are and what they carry. I do this because I have seen what happens when we forget. When young people grow up without seeing themselves reflected in knowledge, they spend years searching for a place to belong. Garvey’s teachings offer a mirror that restores dignity. Education, at its best, gives people back to themselves. That truth is what guides every story I write, every lesson I build, every video I record. Each piece of work is an act of repair. It is a way of preserving memory and restoring confidence. Whether it is a coloring book for children, a course for teachers, or a reflection shared online, the purpose is the same: to strengthen the mind and steady the spirit. My years in the classroom taught me that change rarely happens in a single moment. It comes through steady practice, through small encounters with truth. The Garvey Classroom continues that rhythm of teaching and remembering. It is my way of keeping the circle open for anyone willing to learn, to question, and to grow strong in identity and purpose. That is why I do what I do. #MarcusGarvey #TheGarveyClassroom

Watch our new video on Tiktok! https://ift.tt/29Hbejn