Bankole’s Nation EPISODE 11: Julius Garvey Calls On President Biden to Pardon Marcus Garvey, Discusses Father’s Legacy

The enduring legacy of Marcus Mosiah Garvey, often regarded as the father of the 20th-century Black freedom movement, laid the groundwork for the Civil Rights Movement. Garvey’s call for Black empowerment and a new level of global consciousness inspired the Harlem Renaissance in New York and the rise of prominent Black thinkers of his time.

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. acknowledged Garvey’s influence during a 1965 visit to Jamaica, where he laid a wreath at Garvey’s shrine. In his remarks, Dr. King noted that Garvey was the first man of color in U.S. history to lead a mass movement, giving millions of African Americans a renewed sense of identity and purpose.

Garvey’s impact continues to resonate today, including within the Black Lives Matter movement.

In this exclusive interview, journalist Bankole Thompson speaks with Dr. Julius Garvey, the 91-year-old son of Marcus Garvey. Dr. Julius Garvey, a distinguished surgeon and scientist, has served as a professor of surgery at institutions such as the Albert Einstein College of Medicine and the State University of New York at Stony Brook. He also taught at the Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons. Over his career, he has held leadership roles, including Chief of Thoracic and Vascular Surgery at Queens Hospital Center and Chief of Vascular Thoracic Surgery at Wyckoff Heights Medical Center.

Dr. Garvey is a fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons, the American College of Surgeons, the International College of Surgeons, and the American College of Chest Physicians. He is also a diplomate of the Board of Cardiothoracic & Vascular Surgery, the American Board of Surgery, the American Academy of Wound Management, and the American College of Phlebology.

In the interview, Dr. Garvey reflects on his father’s enduring influence as the founder of the Universal Negro Improvement Association (UNIA) in 1914, an organization that grew to five million members across 40 nations by 1921. He also discusses Garvey’s pioneering work with the Black Star Line, a shipping company symbolizing Black economic independence.

Dr. Julius Garvey is now leading efforts to secure a full posthumous exoneration for his father, who was convicted of mail fraud in 1923. Many legal experts, as well as Garvey’s supporters, believe the conviction was politically motivated. Following his conviction, Marcus Garvey was deported to his native Jamaica and never permitted to return to the United States.

The question remains: will President Joe Biden grant Marcus Garvey a pardon, succeeding where previous presidents, including Barack Obama, did not?

Dr. Garvey has outlined his case for justice in his new book, Justice for Marcus Garvey: Look for Me in the Whirlwind. He hopes the book will persuade the White House to finally rectify this historical injustice.