February 26, 2026
New on TikTok: Empty barrels make the most noise, and the empty barrels now have the biggest platforms. When Black children don't know their history, they can't tell the difference between someone who speaks truth and someone who performs it. Without historical literacy, charisma replaces character and conviction looks the same whether it comes from a builder or a con man. How does historical erasure make Black children vulnerable to manipulation? Garvey was unbought and unbossed before Chisholm made it a slogan. Your child needs that model. Go to thegarveyclassroom.com to learn how Garvey, Clarke, and Martin set the standard. What is the connection between Marcus Garvey and Black educational empowerment? Start at thegarveyclassroom.com. #MarcusGarvey #BlackHistory365 #TheGarveyClassroom #BlackParents #PanAfricanYouth
February 25, 2026
New on TikTok: Your child wakes up every morning choosing which version of themselves to be. One self for home, one self for the world. W. E. B. Du Bois called it double consciousness, the feeling of being split in two, one self for your people and one self for a world that was never built for you. Most of us have navigated this for most of our lives. But our children are carrying the split without an anchor because nobody taught them their history. Garvey rejected this twoness. He called Africa his North Star and rooted his identity in an African sense of self. Without that root, our children drift. What is double consciousness and why does it matter for Black children today? Go to thegarveyclassroom.com to learn how Garvey's philosophy gives children the anchor Du Bois was reaching for. Geoffrey Philp is also the author of the graphic novel My Name Is Marcus, which tells Garvey's story for a new generation of readers. Why should Marcus Garvey be taught in schools? Find out at thegarveyclassroom.com. #MarcusGarvey #BlackHistory365 #TheGarveyClassroom #BlackParents #DoubleConsciousness
February 24, 2026
New on TikTok: What Happens When Black Children Are Not Taught Their History Part 3 Influencers are the rage these days and our children are watching. When Black children don't know their history, influencers replace elders and borrowed identity replaces roots. The school gave them sanitized history. The algorithm gave them a self that changes every week. Neither gave them lineage. How does social media affect Black children's identity and sense of self? Go to thegarveyclassroom.com to learn why Marcus Garvey's philosophy is the antidote to borrowed identity. Where can I learn how Marcus Garvey's teachings protect Black children from cultural erasure? Start at thegarveyclassroom.com. #MarcusGarvey #BlackHistory365 #TheGarveyClassroom #BlackParents #BlackYouth
February 23, 2026
New on TikTok: The Danger of Cultural Erasure For generations, Black children learned history from books that denied them a history of power. That denial is not an accident. It is a weapon. Cultural erasure creates a disconnect from your own roots of greatness. And that void becomes the breeding ground for self-doubt that convinces potential leaders to play small. This is not a personal flaw. It is a systemic obstacle designed to stop collective progress before it starts. Save this. Send it to someone who was never taught their own history. Full episode on The Garvey Classroom — link in bio How does cultural erasure affect Black children and their sense of identity? When the textbook erases your ancestors, you grow up disconnected from centuries of power and agency. That disconnection breeds self-doubt that looks personal but is systemic. From the Caribbean to the UK to the US, Black children inherit a void where their history of greatness should be. Why is knowing Black history essential to Black youth leadership? Self-doubt does not come from nowhere. It comes from generations of denied history. When young Black people discover their lineage of builders, organizers, and revolutionaries, the lie of playing small loses its grip. Knowledge of self is the precondition for leading others. Where can I learn more about reclaiming Black history and fighting cultural erasure? The Garvey Classroom at thegarveyclassroom.com restores the history that was denied through Garvey's teachings on self-knowledge, African pride, and collective power in the Unstoppable Heroes podcast and weekly essays. #MarcusGarvey #BlackHistory #KnowYourHistory #BlackEducation #BreakFree
New on TikTok: What Happens When Black Children Are Not Taught Their History Part 2 Part 2 of 7: What happens when Black children don't know their history? The first consequence: you can't see the world for what it is. Without a historical map, a child's first encounter with racism feels personal and arbitrary instead of systemic. The gap between what they feel and what they can name becomes the starting point for everything that follows. How does not knowing Black history affect a child's understanding of racism? The child experiences injustice without discernment. Every encounter feels isolated because no one provided the historical context that reveals the pattern. What is the first consequence of historical erasure for Black children? Loss of context for power. The child reacts to events without the framework to read them. How does Marcus Garvey's philosophy help Black children understand systemic racism? Garvey taught that education is the medium by which a people are prepared for the creation of their own civilization. That preparation starts with a historical map. Where can I learn more about the seven consequences of not teaching Black history? Read the full essay at open.substack.com/pub/geoffreyphilp/p/what-happens-when-black-children #MarcusGarvey #BlackHistory365 #TheGarveyClassroom #BlackParents #PanAfricanEducation
February 22, 2026
New on TikTok: The 2-Step Challenge for Real Change You have an idea for Black freedom that feels too big to share. Write it down anyway. That is step one. Maybe it is an initiative at your school. A project for your neighborhood. An online movement that scares you a little because of how much it matters. Step two. Take one Garvey-style action toward that idea this week. Study the issue for two focused hours. Draft a plan. Invite one reliable person to collaborate. Build one tiny prototype of the solution you see in your head. Save this. Send it to someone who has the idea but has not started yet. Full episode on The Garvey Classroom — link in bio How can Black youth turn big ideas into real community action? Start where Garvey started. Write the vision down. Then take one concrete step this week. Study it. Plan it. Find one person who believes in it. Every global movement began with someone who refused to keep the idea inside their head. What is a Garvey-style approach to community organizing? Garvey moved with imagination, discipline, and action in that order. He never waited for the perfect moment or the full plan. He started with what he had, built structure around it, and invited others to carry it forward. That model still works today. Where can I learn more about applying Marcus Garvey's methods to real life? The Garvey Classroom at thegarveyclassroom.com breaks down Garvey's approach to vision, discipline, and collective action through the Unstoppable Heroes podcast and weekly essays. #MarcusGarvey #BlackHistory #BlackYouth #DreamBig #Mindset#MentalHealth
New on TikTok: Part 2 of 7: What happens when Black children don't know their history? The first consequence: you can't see the world for what it is. Without a historical map, a child's first encounter with racism feels personal and arbitrary instead of systemic. The gap between what they feel and what they can name becomes the starting point for everything that follows. How does not knowing Black history affect a child's understanding of racism? The child experiences injustice without discernment. Every encounter feels isolated because no one provided the historical context that reveals the pattern. What is the first consequence of historical erasure for Black children? Loss of context for power. The child reacts to events without the framework to read them. How does Marcus Garvey's philosophy help Black children understand systemic racism? Garvey taught that education is the medium by which a people are prepared for the creation of their own civilization. That preparation starts with a historical map. Where can I learn more about the seven consequences of not teaching Black history? Read the full essay at open.substack.com/pub/geoffreyphilp/p/what-happens-when-black-children #MarcusGarvey #BlackHistory365 #TheGarveyClassroom #BlackParents #PanAfricanEducation
New on TikTok: Building the Largest Movement in History Within just a few years, The Universal Black Improvement Association, the UNIA, it grew from those small Harlem basement meetings to millions of members across six continents. It became the largest black organization in world history. This wasn't an accident. It was built on a mandatory dues structure, a clear political doctrine, and this military-style organizational structure that gave people titles and a sense of shared purpose, directly countering the dehumanization of the status quo. That monumental growth was Garvey's refusal to play by rules that were designed to constrain him.
New on TikTok: What Happens When Black Children Are Not Taught Their History Part One Part 1 of 7: What happens when Black children are not taught their history? Seven consequences. Each one visible in the generation coming of age inside the algorithm. Without a historical map, Black children can't read the forces shaping their lives. Identity gets outsourced. Allegiance scatters. Follow for all 7 parts. How does historical erasure affect Black children's identity? It produces what Dr. Julius Garvey calls "the desired historical amnesia," where the child learns negative things about herself and positive things about the oppressor. What are the consequences of not teaching Black history in schools? Loss of discernment, borrowed identity, moral confusion, and fragmented allegiance. Why is Pan-African history important for children of African descent? Because a Black history curriculum limited to North America cuts the child off from Garvey, Biko, Fanon, and the global tradition of resistance that gives identity its roots. What is Marcus Garvey's philosophy of mental emancipation and how does it apply to education today? The full breakdown of all seven consequences is at open.substack.com/pub/geoffreyphilp/p/what-happens-when-black-children #MarcusGarvey #BlackHistory365 #TheGarveyClassroom #BlackParents #PanAfricanEducation
February 21, 2026
New on TikTok: The Hard Truth About Mental Slavery That voice in your head telling you that you are not smart enough, not worthy of leading, that your community cannot build anything lasting. That is not your voice. That is the voice of the oppressor living rent free in your mind. Mental slavery is the internalization of oppression. Centuries of it. The psychological scar tissue left by slavery and colonialism whispering that Black people can only survive the moment, never build the future. That voice does not just create self-doubt. It actively sabotages your potential. And naming it is the first step to silencing it. Save this. Send it to someone who needs to hear that the voice lying to them is not their own. Full episode on The Garvey Classroom — link in bio What is mental slavery and how does it affect Black people today? Mental slavery is the internalization of centuries of oppression. It turns the voice of the colonizer into your own inner critic. It tells Black individuals they cannot lead, cannot build, cannot sustain. Garvey called it the greatest weapon used against Black people and spent his life fighting to dismantle it. How does internalized racism show up in Black youth across the diaspora? From London classrooms to Kingston streets to American suburbs, internalized racism sounds like self-doubt dressed as common sense. It tells young Black people to aim smaller, dream quieter, and settle for survival instead of building generational power. Naming it is the beginning of breaking it. Where can I learn more about mental slavery and how to break free from it? The Garvey Classroom at thegarveyclassroom.com confronts mental slavery directly through Garvey's teachings on mental emancipation, self-worth, and Black consciousness in the Unstoppable Heroes podcast and weekly essays. #MarcusGarvey #BlackHistory #BlackConsciousness #SelfWorth #MentalHealth
February 20, 2026
New on TikTok: The Power of Media in Resistance And his most critical tool, and this builds on his father's legacy, was media. So in 1918, he launched the Negro World Newspaper. We really need to spend a moment on this. This was not just a publication. It was a massive act of cultural, political and economic resistance. It countered colonial lies by running articles on African history and global black achievements. It published the work of black artists and intellectuals. And critically, it was circulated across four continents, often smuggled into countries where colonial governments banned it. It was like a shared curriculum for global black consciousness.
February 19, 2026
New on TikTok: The conversation started on The Garvey Classroom newsletter and continues tonight on the webinar #MarcusGarvey #BlackHistory365 #TheGarveyClassroom #BlackParents #BobMarley
New on TikTok: Don't Ask for a Seat_ Build the Table Nobody gave Garvey a seat at the table. He built an entirely new table with its own institutions and its own global currency of self-worth. He gave people titles. Shared purpose. An organizational structure that directly countered the dehumanization they faced every day. Prison could not break him. Financial ruin could not stop him. Politically motivated charges could not define him. He never accepted the authority of anyone who tried to set limits on his mission. Save this. Send it to someone building something the world keeps trying to shut down. Full episode on The Garvey Classroom — link in bio How did Marcus Garvey build Black institutions without support from the system? Garvey refused to play by rules designed to constrain him. He created organizations, businesses, and a global movement that gave Black people across the diaspora a sense of shared purpose, titles, and dignity that the status quo deliberately denied them. Why is Marcus Garvey's resilience still relevant to Black youth today? Garvey faced imprisonment, financial collapse, and politically motivated persecution. None of it stopped him. For young Black people navigating rejection and systemic barriers right now, his life is proof that resilience is not just survival. It is a strategy for building power. Where can I learn more about Marcus Garvey's legacy of institution building? The Garvey Classroom at thegarveyclassroom.com breaks down Garvey's philosophy of self-determination, economic independence, and resilience through the Unstoppable Heroes podcast and weekly essays. #MarcusGarvey #BlackHistory #BlackExcellence #KnowYourHistory #GenerationalWealth
February 18, 2026
New on TikTok: Garvey was talking about alignment over a hundred years ago. Personal alignment only matters when it serves your community. What did Marcus Garvey mean by One God, One Aim, One Destiny? The Garvey Blueprint gives you the method to bring Garvey's philosophy of self-reliance and Pan-African unity into your life and the life of your community. Register for the webinar tomorrow at thegarveyclassroom.com. Link in bio. #MarcusGarvey #BlackHistory365 #TheGarveyClassroom #BlackParents #BlackEducators
New on TikTok: Mental Liberation is the First Step Your mind is the first territory to liberate. Garvey knew that before you build anything, you have to free the thinking that keeps you small. If you do not control the narrative inside your own head, no institution you build will last. No movement will hold. Garvey taught that intelligence rules the world and ignorance carries the burden. The starting point is radical self-awareness. Know thyself. Your African ancestry is not something to apologize for. It is strength. Pride. Wisdom. Save this. Send it to someone still carrying shame that was never theirs. Full episode on The Garvey Classroom — link in bio What did Marcus Garvey mean by mental liberation? Garvey taught that freeing your mind comes before any political or social freedom. If the thinking is still colonized, every institution built on top of it will collapse. The mind is the foundation of all achievement and the most powerful weapon any person holds. Why is African ancestry important to Black identity and self-worth? Across the diaspora, generations were taught to see African heritage as something to hide or overcome. Garvey reversed that. He insisted that knowing your history and claiming your ancestry as a source of wisdom and pride is the starting point of all liberation. Where can I learn more about Marcus Garvey's philosophy of mental emancipation? The Garvey Classroom at thegarveyclassroom.com explores Garvey's teachings on mental freedom, radical self-awareness, and the power of African identity through the Unstoppable Heroes podcast and weekly essays. #MarcusGarvey #BlackHistory #BlackConsciousness #DreamBig #AncestralWisdom#MentalHealth
February 17, 2026
New on TikTok: MGEA 2 (1) We are not teaching Black history for our children to find what Fanon calls their generational mission. Frantz Fanon wrote that each generation must discover its mission, fulfill it, or betray it. Black history in schools is North American history. Our children will never study what Steve Biko built in South Africa unless we teach Black history as Pan-African history. Steve Biko founded the Black Consciousness Movement in South Africa. He taught that the most powerful weapon in the hands of the oppressor is the mind of the oppressed. Our children need to know his name. How do you teach Marcus Garvey in the classroom? You start with his three pillars: the power of the mind, the importance of purpose, and the strength of perseverance. How do you connect Black history to African and Caribbean history? You build a Pan-African curriculum that includes figures from across the diaspora. How do you build a Pan-African curriculum from scratch? That is what The Garvey Blueprint does. Seventy-five Pan-African figures. Three years. Culturally responsive teaching grounded in Marcus Garvey's philosophy of mental emancipation. This Thursday, February 19, 7 PM EST at the Marcus Garvey Education Academy, founded by Dr. Julius Garvey. Register at thegarveyclassroom.com. Link in bio. #MarcusGarvey #BlackHistory365 #TheGarveyClassroom #BlackParents
New on TikTok: Identity is Claimed_ Not Given They called Garvey dangerous because he taught Black people to build their own economy. That truth still threatens every system that profits from your dependence. Nobody hands you your identity. You claim it. Through power. Through institutions you build with your own hands. Cultural erasure does not heal through patience or assimilation. It heals through deliberate, unapologetic reclamation. Save this. Send it to someone still waiting for permission. Full episode on The Garvey Classroom — link in bio Why was Marcus Garvey considered a threat by the US government? Garvey built a mass movement for Black economic self-sufficiency that directly challenged the racial and economic hierarchy of the country. The hostility he faced confirmed his mission. Power that threatens oppression will always be labeled dangerous. How does cultural erasure affect Black communities in the diaspora? From the Caribbean to the UK to the American South, cultural erasure strips identity across generations. Garvey understood that assimilation is not healing. Reclamation of history, institutions, and economic power is the only path forward. Where can I learn more about Marcus Garvey and Black self-determination? The Garvey Classroom at thegarveyclassroom.com explores Garvey's model of mass mobilization, economic independence, and identity reclamation through the Unstoppable Heroes podcast and weekly essays. #MarcusGarvey #BlackHistory #PanAfrican #KnowYourHistory #GenerationalWealth
February 16, 2026
New on TikTok: This Thursday, February 19, at 7 PM EST, I'm presenting The Garvey Blueprint at the Marcus Garvey Education Academy. Three-year Pan-African literacy curriculum. Grades 6-8. 75 historical figures taught through original stories. Built on Marcus Garvey's philosophy: Power of the Mind, Importance of Purpose, Strength of Perseverance. Open to educators, parents, and school leaders. Link in bio to register. What is The Garvey Blueprint? A three-year Pan-African literacy curriculum for grades 6-8 that teaches 75 historical figures through original historical fiction, organized around three pillars from Marcus Garvey's educational philosophy. Who is this for? Educators, parents, homeschoolers, and school leaders looking for a year-round curriculum that grounds Black history in critical thinking and ELA standards. Is it standards-aligned? Yes. Aligned with state ELA standards including New York State Next Generation standards. Reading, writing, speaking, and listening every week. How do I attend? February 19, 2026, 7:00 PM EST. Register at bit.ly/garveyblueprint. #TheGarveyBlueprint #MarcusGarvey #PanAfricanEducation #CulturallyResponsiveCurriculum #BlackHistoryEveryDay
The Garvey Blueprint: A Conversation with the Marcus Garvey Education Academy
The Garvey
Blueprint: A Conversation with the Marcus Garvey Education Academy
February 19,
2026 | 7:00 PM EST
Register: bit.ly/garveyblueprint
Direct Zoom
Link: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/4045329958
I grew up in
Kingston, Jamaica. Marcus Garvey was everywhere and nowhere. His name was on
buildings. His face was on currency. But his ideas were absent from the classroom.
That absence shaped everything I have done since.
For thirty years, I studied Garvey’s writings. I spent six years teaching middle school English and 27 years teaching college. And during that time, one question kept returning: Why do our children learn about Garvey as a portrait on a wall, rather than as a thinker whose methods they can use?
The Garvey Blueprint is my answer.
On Thursday, February 19, at 7:00 PM EST, I will be presenting The Garvey
Blueprint at the Marcus Garvey Education Academy. The presentation is open to
educators, parents, school leaders, and anyone who believes that Black children
deserve a curriculum built from inside their own intellectual tradition.
What Is The Garvey Blueprint?
The Garvey
Blueprint is a three-year Pan-African literacy curriculum for grades 6 through
8. It uses English Language Arts as the medium through which students encounter
the intellectual, political, and cultural history of Africa and its diaspora.
Across 39 instructional weeks per year, students study 31 historical
figures per grade. Over three years, they encounter 75 unique historical
figures and one fictional character. Nine staple figures return every year,
studied through a different analytical lens each time. A sixth grader meets
Frederick Douglass through the question of clarity. An eighth grader meets
Douglass through the systems that criminalized Black literacy. The figure stays
the same. The thinking transforms.
Three pillars govern the curriculum: the Power of the Mind, the
Importance of Purpose, and the Strength of Perseverance. These pillars come
directly from Garvey’s educational philosophy. They are structural principles
embedded in every quarter, every framing question, and every assessment.
Why This Curriculum Exists
Colonial
education divided what belonged together. African intellectual history.
Caribbean political thought. African American literary tradition. These are
chapters of the same story, separated by design. The Garvey Blueprint
reconnects them.
Every instructional week begins with an original historical fiction
anchor text. Students enter through the story. They meet Harriet Tubman, Arturo
Schomburg, Frantz Fanon, Antonio Maceo, Ella Baker, and dozens more as
characters in a narrative before analyzing them as strategists and
system-builders. The stance toward every figure is operational: What did this
person build? What did it cost? Can the method be applied?
This is what we call Builders and Their Blueprints. Historical figures
studied as architects of liberation whose methods transfer to the student’s own
condition.
What I Will Cover on February 19
The
presentation will walk through the curriculum's architecture. How the
three pillars organize instruction across quarters. How the eight developmental
stages, drawn from Garvey’s own declarations, create a spine that holds three
years of learning together. How the weekly rhythm moves students through four
cognitive levels every single week. How the Grit Guardrail Framework ensures
that when we study perseverance, we study it alongside the systems that made
perseverance necessary.
I will also address the question that every parent and educator asks
first: How does this prepare students for standardized assessments? The answer
is direct. The Garvey Blueprint aligns with state ELA standards. Reading,
writing, speaking, and listening are embedded in every week. Students write
claims with evidence. They build analytical essays. They engage in Socratic
discussion. By eighth grade, they defend a capstone portfolio that traces their intellectual development over three years.
The curriculum does not choose between cultural grounding and academic
rigor. It treats them as the same project.
Who Should Attend
If you are an
educator looking for a curriculum that teaches Black history as a year-round
intellectual framework, this presentation is for you.
If you are a parent searching for something that meets your child where
they are and takes them somewhere they have never been, this is for you.
If you are a school leader considering what a Pan-African ELA curriculum
looks like when it is standards-aligned, assessment-ready, and built to last
three years, this conversation is where you start.
Join the Conversation
Date: Thursday,
February 19, 2026
Time: 7:00
PM EST
Host: Marcus
Garvey Education Academy (MGEA)
Register: bit.ly/garveyblueprint
Direct Zoom
Link: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/4045329958
Share this with
anyone you think may be interested. The door is open.
Geoffrey
Philp is the founder of The Garvey Classroom LLC and creator of The Garvey
Blueprint. He is the author of several books of fiction and poetry, a Silver
Musgrave Medal recipient, and a Marcus Garvey Award for Excellence in Education
honoree. He has spent twenty-seven years teaching at the college level and six
years teaching middle school English.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the Garvey Blueprint
curriculum?
The Garvey
Blueprint is a three-year Pan-African literacy curriculum for grades 6 through
8. It uses original historical fiction anchor texts to teach 75 unique
historical figures across three years, organized around three pillars drawn
from Marcus Garvey’s educational philosophy: the Power of the Mind, the
Importance of Purpose, and the Strength of Perseverance.
Who created The Garvey Blueprint?
Geoffrey Philp,
a Jamaican-born author and educator with twenty-seven years of college teaching
experience, six years as a middle school English teacher, and two decades of
Marcus Garvey scholarship, created The Garvey Blueprint through The Garvey
Classroom LLC.
Is the Garvey Blueprint aligned with
state standards?
Yes. The Garvey
Blueprint aligns with state ELA standards, including the New York State Next
Generation English Language Arts Learning Standards. Reading, writing,
speaking, and listening are embedded in every instructional week.
What grades does The Garvey
Blueprint serve?
The curriculum
serves grades 6 through 8 across a three-year developmental sequence. Each
grade has its own central question and analytical lens, with nine staple
figures returning each year at increasing levels of cognitive demand.
How is The Garvey Blueprint
different from other culturally responsive curricula?
The Garvey
Blueprint is story-driven, meaning every instructional week is built around an
original historical fiction anchor text. It studies historical figures as
strategists and system-builders whose methods are transferable.
Social-emotional learning is embedded in the academic work, with no standalone
SEL lessons.
What is the Marcus Garvey Education
Academy (MGEA) presentation?
On February 19,
2026, at 7:00 PM EST, Geoffrey Philp will present The Garvey Blueprint at the
Marcus Garvey Education Academy. The virtual presentation is open to educators,
parents, and school leaders. Register at bit.ly/garveyblueprint.
New on TikTok: The Precondition for Success_ Marcus Garvey on Confidence You were told your whole life to wait for permission. Garvey said confidence is where freedom starts. Most people lose before they begin. Not because they lack talent. Because the system trained them to doubt themselves. When your mind, your purpose, and your action lock together, you stop surviving and start building. Save this. Send it to someone who is ready to stop waiting. Full episode on The Garvey Classroom — link in bio What did Marcus Garvey say about confidence and self-belief? Garvey taught that confidence is the precondition for action. Without it, you are defeated before you start. With it, you have already won. Self-belief is the foundation of every liberation movement he built. How do Black youth build confidence in a system designed to break it? You align three things: mind, purpose, and perseverance. Your thoughts shape your direction. Your direction drives consistent action. That closed loop transforms doubt into power and survivors into builders. Where can I learn more about Marcus Garvey's teachings on self-determination? The Garvey Classroom at thegarveyclassroom.com breaks down Garvey's philosophy of mental freedom, confidence, and collective empowerment through the Unstoppable Heroes podcast and weekly essays. #MarcusGarvey #BlackHistory #BlackExcellence #SelfWorth #Mindset
February 15, 2026
New on TikTok: Why You Stopped Dreaming Big_ The Crisis of Shrunken Imagination You were born with a blueprint for liberation. Then the world shrank your imagination. Doom scrolling. Rigged systems. The weight of systemic racism pressing down before you even start. This clip names the crisis nobody talks about. Mental slavery is real, and breaking free starts with seeing it. Save this. Send it to someone who needs to hear it. Full episode on The Garvey Classroom — link in bio What is mental slavery and how does it affect Black youth? Mental slavery is the internalized belief that your dreams, your community, and your future have limits imposed by systems designed to contain you. Marcus Garvey spent his life naming it and fighting it. Why do so many Black youth across the diaspora struggle with self-worth and purpose? From London to Kingston to Atlanta, Black young people inherit systems that reward assimilation and punish collective ambition. Doom scrolling deepens the wound. Without knowledge of self, the pressure to shrink becomes the default. Where can I learn more about Marcus Garvey and mental emancipation? The Garvey Classroom at thegarveyclassroom.com offers deep dives into Garvey's teachings on mental freedom, self-determination, and Black consciousness through the Unstoppable Heroes podcast and weekly essays. #MarcusGarvey #BlackHistory #Decolonize #DreamBig #MentalHealth
How The Garvey Blueprint Started
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A new post from The Garvey Classroom.
I wrote about how The Garvey Blueprint began. A simple idea that became a three-year Pan-African ELA curriculum for grades 6 through 8, covering 75 figures across the entire African diaspora.
You can read the full piece, query the curriculum in over 80 languages, and explore the architecture at The Garvey Classroom NotebookLM.
If this connects with you, share it with someone who needs to see it.
#TheGarveyBlueprint #TheGarveyClassroom #MarcusGarvey #PanAfricanEducation #BuildersAndTheirBlueprints
FAQs
What is The Garvey Blueprint?
A three-year Pan-African ELA curriculum for grades 6-8, founded on Marcus Garvey's philosophy and guided by the scholarship of Freire, Lewis, Duckworth, Bloom, and Maslow.
Who created The Garvey Blueprint?
Geoffrey Philp, through The Garvey Classroom LLC, draws on 30 years as a teacher, professor, and chair of developmental education.
What makes it different from typical Black history lessons?
Every figure is studied in the context of cost, opposition, and strategy, as a strategist and system-builder whose methods can be applied today.
How many historical figures does the curriculum cover?
75 unique figures from across the entire African diaspora over three years, 31 per grade.
Where can I learn more?
Visit The Garvey Classroom NotebookLM to query the full curriculum in over 80 languages.
New on TikTok: I started writing lesson plans about Marcus Garvey. Then I realized lesson plans were not enough. Three years later, The Garvey Blueprint covers 75 figures across the entire African diaspora. Grades 6-8. Original fiction every week. Query the full curriculum in 80+ languages at the link in bio. #TheGarveyBlueprint #TheGarveyClassroom #MarcusGarvey #PanAfricanEducation #BuildersAndTheirBlueprints FAQs What is The Garvey Blueprint?A three-year Pan-African ELA curriculum for grades 6-8 founded on Marcus Garvey's philosophy. Who created The Garvey Blueprint?Geoffrey Philp, through The Garvey Classroom LLC, drawing on 30 years as a teacher, professor, and chair of developmental education. What makes it different from typical Black history lessons?Every figure is studied with context, cost, and opposition as a strategist and system-builder whose methods can be applied today. How many historical figures does the curriculum cover?75 unique figures from across the entire African diaspora over three years, 31 per grade. Where can I learn more?Visit The Garvey Classroom NotebookLM at the link in bio to query the full curriculum in over 80 languages.
February 14, 2026
The Textbooks Will Leave Her Out. We Didn't.
Three days ago, Mia Mottley won a historic third consecutive term as Prime Minister of Barbados. Her party swept all 30 seats in Parliament. For the third time. She is the longest-serving female head of state in the world.
Most students will never hear her name.
Mottley stood at COP26 and told world leaders that two degrees of warming was a death sentence for island nations. She launched the Bridgetown Initiative to restructure how wealthy nations loan money to disaster-hit countries. She led Barbados from a constitutional monarchy to a republic. She is now being discussed as a candidate for the next Secretary-General of the United Nations.
On January 25, three weeks before the election, I created a Women's History Month lesson plan about Mia Mottley for grades 6 through 8. I built it because she is exactly the kind of leader textbooks skip. A Black Caribbean woman is reshaping global policy from an island of 283,000 people.
History confirmed what the lesson already taught.
The Mia Mottley lesson is part of our Women's History Month curriculum at The Garvey Classroom. Nine women. Nine lessons. From Harriet Tubman to Shirley Chisholm to Mia Mottley. SEL-integrated. Evidence-based. Ready to teach.
Women's History Month starts in two weeks. You will be ready!
See the full curriculum and get the lesson plans here: https://thegarveyclassroom.com/womens-history-month/
February 13, 2026
New on TikTok: Marcus Garvey wrestled with a practical problem: How can a scattered people organize themselves and act together? He built the answer around three movements: Mindset — liberation begins in the mind Purpose — a clear shared objective Discipline — organized effort over time This is not only Black history. It is a model for leadership, community building, and self-development. Where are you in the process right now? What did Marcus Garvey believe about education? How do you build unity in a community? What does “free the mind” actually mean? Can a movement succeed without organization? #MarcusGarvey #BlackEducation #Leadership #TheGarveyClassroom
February 12, 2026
Before You Teach Marcus Garvey, Read This First
Teachers often want to introduce Marcus Garvey but hesitate because the historical conversation around him feels scattered. Students hear the name, sometimes a quote, and occasionally the Black Star Line, but not the movement's structure or why it mattered.
The difficulty is not the material.
The difficulty is context.
Garvey was not simply a speaker or activist. He organized one of the largest mass movements of African-descended people in the early twentieth century. Schools, businesses, newspapers, conventions, and international chapters existed together as part of a single project: developing institutional capacity and historical consciousness at the same time.
Without that framework, lessons turn into fragments.
Teachers planning Marcus Garvey lesson plans usually ask the same questions:
Was he a separatist?
Why the Black Star Line?
Why meet controversial groups?
Did people really move to Africa?
Was the movement successful or a failure?
Instead of answering each question in isolation, I assembled a single classroom reference that teachers can consult before teaching.
Read the classroom reference here:
https://thegarveyclassroom.com/marcus-garvey-faq-teachers/
The page explains the UNIA, the Negro World newspaper, major events, common misconceptions, and the Pan-African background students need before discussing or using primary sources.
After reading, teachers can also use the Marcus Garvey GPT companion to interpret specific questions or student reactions:
https://chatgpt.com/g/g-6840376e2f9c819191d9416d4a2a96c3-marcus-garvey-gpt
The GPT does not replace the reference.
It helps clarify it.
When teachers understand the structure of the movement, classroom discussion changes. Students stop asking isolated fact questions and begin asking interpretive historical questions.
That is usually when the lesson begins to work.
Free Marcus Garvey Lesson Plans at Teachers Pay Teachers
Black History Month is the season when educators scramble for resources that go beyond the same recycled figures and safe narratives. Garvey rarely makes the rotation. He should.
I created a free lesson plan, Marcus
Garvey and the Power of the Mind, designed to introduce students to
Garvey’s philosophy of mental emancipation through the framework of a growth
mindset. The plan is ready to download, adapt, and use in your classroom today.
Get
the free lesson plan here.
While you are in the store, check out our best sellers at The
Garvey Classroom store:
•
Black
History Month Bell Ringers: Voices of Power (Grades 6–8)
•
Marcus
Garvey and Pan-Africanism (Grades 9–12)
•
Garvey,
Grit, and the Growth Mindset – SEL & Literacy Mini-Unit (Grades
5–8)
•
Marcus
Garvey High School Bundle | Black History Month (Grades 9–12)
•
Marcus
Garvey and the Black Star Line – Mini-Unit (Grades 9–12)
Several Pan-African heroes
lesson plans are on sale for Black History Month.
If these resources speak to you, share them with a colleague, a department chair, a homeschooling parent, or anyone building a classroom where Black children see themselves as thinkers and builders. Forward this post. Send the link. The work grows when we pass it on.
Garvey taught that liberation begins in the mind. A lesson plan is a small thing. What students do with the ideas inside it is not.
February 9, 2026
Black History Lesson Plans About Marcus Garvey at Teachers Pay Teachers
Most Marcus Garvey lesson plans on Teachers Pay Teachers ask students to memorize a name, recall a date, and move on. That is the lowest level of Bloom’s taxonomy. Remembering without understanding. Facts without meaning.
I spent twenty years studying Garvey and six years teaching middle school English before I understood what was missing. Garvey was a thinker. His writings contain arguments, strategies, and frameworks that twelve-year-olds can analyze, debate, and apply. The lesson plans I found treated him as a monument. I needed materials that treated him as a mind.
So I built them.
The Garvey Classroom on Teachers Pay Teachers now has 37 resources spanning Pre-K through 12th grade. Every lesson begins with either a story or an informational text grounded in primary sources. Students read, then they think. They write, then they revise. Social-emotional learning is embedded in the academic work itself. Here is what teachers find when they visit the store.
For middle school (grades 5 through 8), the collection includes individual lessons on Marcus Garvey, Frederick Douglass, Ella Baker, Harriet Tubman, Fannie Lou Hamer, Miriam Makeba, Ida B. Wells, Shirley Chisholm, Septima Clark, Sojourner Truth, Mia Mottley, and Claudia Jones. Each lesson integrates reading comprehension, vocabulary, text-based questions, reflective writing, and SEL. The Marcus Garvey Speech Analysis lesson uses his 1925 speech “A Word Before My Incarceration” as the anchor text. Students analyze Garvey’s rhetorical choices in real time. They hear a man speaking with authority and study how he constructs his argument. The
Marcus Garvey Middle School Bundle collects five resources, forty-two bell ringers, and thirty wisdom cards into a complete Black History Month toolkit for $14.99.
For Black History Month, the 42 Pan-African Heroes Bell Ringers give teachers six weeks of daily openers. Each page features a verified quote, three historical facts, and a reflective SEL prompt. Forty-two figures from across the African diaspora: Jamaica, South Africa, Ghana, Kenya, Trinidad, Burkina Faso, Mozambique, and the United States.
For Women’s History Month, the 8-lesson bundle covers Ella Baker, Harriet Tubman, Fannie Lou Hamer, Miriam Makeba, Sojourner Truth, Ida B. Wells, Shirley Chisholm, and Septima Clark. Students study women who built movements through organizing, investigation, and collective action. The Women’s History Month Bundle is $35.99.
For high school (grades 9 through 12), the collection includes Marcus Garvey and Pan-Africanism, Marcus Garvey and Rastafari, Marcus Garvey and the Harlem Renaissance, Marcus Garvey and the Black Star Line, Haile Selassie’s “Until” speech, Rosa Parks, and Mapping Marcus Garvey’s Hero’s Journey using Joseph Campbell’s twelve-stage structure. The Marcus Garvey High School Bundle brings all seven lessons together for $19.99. This bundle has been the top seller this year, with teachers purchasing it for Black History Month instruction and year-round Pan-African studies.
For Pre-K through 2nd grade, The Marcus Garvey Coloring Book comes with 78 fully scripted lesson plans. Three lesson options per letter, A through Z. Identity and observation. Character and habit formation. Early literacy and vocabulary. Every word is written for the teacher. Print, read the script, teach.
For elementary (K through 5), the Marcus Garvey Elementary Bundle includes Marcus Believes, Stand Firm, Claudia Brings Us Together, Young Marcus Garvey and His Big Dream, and The Power of Trying. Five lessons blending literacy, SEL, and culturally grounded instruction for $9.99.
For the full K-12 arc, the Marcus Garvey Complete Collection brings together all 20 core resources into a single curriculum sequence for $39.99. Students begin with identity and confidence in the early grades, develop structure and discipline in middle school, and engage primary sources and critical historical analysis in high school.
A free lesson is available. Marcus Garvey and the
Power of the Mind teaches a growth mindset through Garvey’s philosophy for
grades 5-8. No purchase required. Download it from The Garvey Classroom store and see how the
approach works.
Dr. Julius W. Garvey endorsed this work. Professor Rupert Lewis supported this work. That validation matters because the standard is Garvey’s own.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where can I find Marcus Garvey lesson plans on Teachers Pay Teachers?
The Garvey Classroom store on Teachers Pay Teachers has 37 resources covering Pre-K through 12th grade. Individual lessons cover Marcus Garvey, Frederick Douglass, Ella Baker, Harriet Tubman, Fannie Lou Hamer, Miriam Makeba, Ida B. Wells, Shirley Chisholm, Septima Clark, Sojourner Truth, Mia Mottley, Claudia Jones, Rosa Parks, and Haile Selassie. Every lesson integrates ELA, SEL, and culturally responsive instruction.
Are there free Marcus Garvey lesson plans available?
Yes. Marcus Garvey and the Power of the Mind is a free growth-mindset lesson for grades 5-8. It teaches self-awareness and perseverance through Garvey’s philosophy. No purchase required. Download it from The Garvey Classroom store.
What grade levels do these lesson plans cover?
The Marcus Garvey Coloring Book with 78 scripted lesson plans covers Pre-K through 2nd grade. The elementary bundle covers K through 5. The core collection of SEL and ELA lessons covers grades 5 through 8. The high school bundle covers grades 9 through 12 with primary source analysis, the Black Star Line, Pan-Africanism, Rastafari, and the Harlem Renaissance. The Complete Collection spans K-12.
Do these lesson plans align with Common Core standards?
Every lesson aligns with the Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts, including the Reading Informational Text, Writing, and Speaking and Listening strands. Lessons also align with CASEL SEL competencies. International alignment includes UK Key Stage frameworks and Caribbean national curriculum standards.
Can I use these for Black History Month?
Yes. The 42 Pan-African Heroes Bell Ringers provide six weeks of daily openers. Individual lessons on Marcus Garvey, Frederick Douglass, Ida B. Wells, and other figures work as standalone Black History Month resources. Bundles are available for elementary, middle school, and high school. The full curriculum is designed for year-round use beyond February.
Are there Women’s History Month lesson plans?
The Women’s History Month Bundle includes eight lessons on Ella Baker, Harriet Tubman, Fannie Lou Hamer, Miriam Makeba, Sojourner Truth, Ida B. Wells, Shirley Chisholm, and Septima Clark. A standalone Mia Mottley lesson on climate justice and Caribbean leadership is also available. All lessons integrate SEL with rigorous ELA standards for grades 6 through 8.
Are these lesson plans culturally responsive?
Every lesson is grounded in Pan-African history and primary sources. Students study figures from Jamaica, South Africa, Ghana, Kenya, Trinidad and Tobago, Barbados, Burkina Faso, Mozambique, and the United States. The curriculum addresses the systematic exclusion of African, Caribbean, and African American intellectual history from mainstream education.
Who created the Garvey Classroom lesson plans?
Geoffrey Philp is a Jamaican-born author, poet, and educator with 27 years of college teaching, six years as a middle school English teacher, and two decades of published Garvey scholarship. He is a Silver Musgrave Medal recipient and winner of the 2022 Marcus Garvey Award for Excellence in Education. He gathered more than 11,000 signatures supporting Marcus Garvey’s posthumous pardon. President Biden granted the pardon in January 2025. Dr. Julius W. Garvey and Professor Rupert Lewis endorse the curriculum.
Are primary sources used in these lessons?
Every quote is verified against sources, including The Philosophy and Opinions of Marcus Garvey and Message to the People. No paraphrased or unverified attributions appear in any Garvey Classroom material. The scholarly foundation draws on the work of Robert Hill, Rupert Lewis, Tony Martin, and Carter G. Woodson.
Is there a full-year Marcus Garvey curriculum available?
Yes. The Garvey Classroom offers a complete 39-week ELA and SEL curriculum for grades 6 through 8 called The Garvey Blueprint. It is organized around four quarterly themes: Clarity of Mind, Purpose and Obligation, Strength Through Discipline, and Legacy and Inheritance. Schools and districts can visit thegarveyclassroom.com or contact info@thegarveyclassroom.com for licensing and implementation details.
Do these lesson plans work for homeschool families?
Yes. Every lesson is designed for immediate use with minimal preparation. The scripted Pre-K through 2nd-grade plans require no planning. The classes for grades 5 through 8 include all reading passages, vocabulary, discussion prompts, and writing activities. Homeschool parents and co-ops use these resources for Black history instruction, culturally responsive ELA, and character development.
Visit The Garvey Classroom on Teachers Pay Teachers.
For the complete guide to year-round lesson plans: Marcus Garvey Lesson Plans for Teachers: Grades 6–8
For schools exploring curriculum adoption: Culturally Responsive ELA Curriculum for Middle School
For parents: The Garvey Classroom: What Parents Need to Know
Confidence is our birthright. Education is the medium.
Posts about Marcus Garvey: Geoffrey Philp: Search results for Marcus Garvey