As a part of the Caribbean Biography Series, Rupert Lewis focuses his attention on

Marcus Garvey. Composing an autobiography in 2018, highlighting his life, as well as his

achievements, such as the creation of Universal Negro Improvement Association (UNIA), which

served as the catalyst for the pan-African ideology and the Black Power Movement. These

ideologies subsequently promoted uprising and African Independence throughout the Caribbean

and the United States and are the reasons for Garvey’s place in the history books. It can be noted

that, the themes of Caribbean Identity, Caribbean Family, Religion & Education and Colonialism

Resistance as well the social and historical context of the recordings, and the relevance of Lewis’

writings on Garvey, to Caribbean civilizations, are what establish his book as a truly successful

literary work.

The theme of Caribbean Family, Education and Religion can be seen firstly through

Lewis’ presentation of a broken Caribbean family as “Marcus Garvey Senior (Sr), had fathered

three separate sets of children. Marcus Garvey Jr. belonged to the third set.” (Lewis, 2018, p. 1).

This led to the creation of a matriarchal home for the fostering of Marcus Garvey Junior (Jr),

leading him to be “very attached to his mother.” (Lewis, 2018, p. 1). The lived reality of this

single father home, due to the polygamous nature of Marcus’ father, is a characteristic that is

manifested throughout the Caribbean due to the practices arising from the detrimental uprooting

of African families during the slavery era. In addition to this, it can be seen that this familial

African cultural retention; a social phenomena highlighted in Herskovitz (1950). This had a

profound effect on the family life of Marcus Garvey Jr. in the future. The blasé attitude towards

relationships, and the polygamous tendencies perpetuated by Marcus’ father are passed on to

him. This is highlighted when Amy Jacques Garvey, the wife of Marcus Garvey Jr., who stated
that “the value of a wife to him, was like a gold coin - expendable, to get what he wanted, and

hard enough to withstand rough usage in the process.” (Goffe, 2007, p. 89)

Subsequently, the theme of education in the Caribbean context is presented, as Garvey

departs to England due to his determination to continue his schooling. This is indicative of the

Eurocentrism prevalent during this time, as European schooling was revered and seen as superior

- “Garvey was determined to further his education, so he left for England where he attended

Birkbeck College.” (Lewis, 2018, p. 7) In addition to this, in his four years at Birbeck College

(1914 - 1918), Garvey also “followed European politics” (Lewis, 2018, p. 7), emphasizing his

view of the foreign education as superior. Evidence of European education being paramount is

further presented, as Garvey highlights the fact that upon the founding of the Universal Negro

Improvement and Conservation Association, he was faced with racism by his own fellow

Jamaicans - “I really never knew there was so much color prejudice in Jamaica, my own native

home, until I started the work of the Universal Negro Improvement Association” It must be

noted that this opposition was received from the population of educated Jamaicans who were

seen as “a product of British commercial, military and missionary incursions into Africa”. Lewis

also posits that, “when Garvey proposed a redemptive mission for Africa - that is, a wresting of

Africa from European control - the idea was met with hostility, particularly by educated West

Indians.” (Lewis, 2018, p. 10), as they had no desire to fight for their own rights, due to their

self-perceived inferior status.

Finally, the theme of religion in the Caribbean is demonstrated through Lewis’ recounts

of Garvey’s portrayal of his mother, Sarah Jane, as a “sober and conscientious Christian”. This

further indicates the European imposition of their colonial religion onto Caribbean people.
(Lewis, 2018, p. 2) In conjunction with this, Garvey began attending the Church of England

school in 1895, which provides an increased understanding as to how colonial ideologies

permeated both through religion and education in the Caribbean. (Lewis, 2018, p. 4)

In addition, Caribbean Identity as a theme is presented when Lewis makes mention of

Sarah Jane’s small plot of land, on which she planted pimento and citrus. (Lewis, 2018, p. 2)

Subsistence farming gave the newly freed slaves a sense of identity, thus making the practice an

integral part of the Caribbean Identity. Later, Lewis makes mention to the fact that Garvey was a

part of a literary committee made up of elocutionists. The members of this committee would go

on to play a crucial role in Garvey’s UNIA and they also engaged in intellectual conversations

amongst themselves as “they read and discussed European history and the works of Adam Smith

on political economy. Papers were prepared and read on a variety of topics such as music,

political economy, philosophy and history.” (Lewis, 2018, p. 2) Additionally, Garvey associated

himself with a team of cricketers called the Sporting Eleven, whose captain, J, Coleman Beecher

would later work with Garvey on his newspaper. Garvey’s involvement in the literary committee

and the Sporting Eleven, along with the fostering of the relationships built with its members; was

not only beneficial to him in his future endeavors, but it also aided in the creation of his social

identity. This is based on the definition of Identity provided by Woodard and F. Grace (2006) as

being “a multilayered concept that is a combination of social identity, personal identity and ego

identity; the social identity being the groups that one may belong to.

The theme of identity is further emphasized through Lewis’ recount of Garvey’s return to

Jamaica, as on the 12th December, 1927 it was reported that “Mr. Garvey’s arrival was perhaps

the most historic event that has taken place in the metropolis of the island” and “no denser crowd
has been witnessed in Kingston.” (Gleaner, 1927, p. 3, 6, 19) Lewis indicated that this was so

because significant sections of the black population in Jamaica saw Garvey as their spokesman.

(Lewis, 2018, p. 61) This was indicative of the fact that Garvey acted as the face of the

Caribbean people and their identity.

Furthermore, Colonial Resistance as a theme, is presented through Garvey Sr’s

involvement in politics and strong support of George William Gordon’s progressive political

standout. (Lewis, 2018, p.1) Lewis goes on to describe how Garvey utilizes his education to

exude political resistance in 1910, when he was appointed as an assistant secretary of the

National Club and began the issuing of a pamphlet, called The Struggling Mass. Garvey’s

colonial resistance is also presented when Lewis highlights the fact that Garvey was met with

controversy and had his ideals opposed, as “he sought to challenge the racial subordination &

economic exploitation being experienced by Africans” (Lewis, 2018, p. 10)

The life of Marcus Garvey is indeed an extremely influential one, as he shaped and

impacted history and the lives of African people all across the globe today. Lewis examines the

life of Garvey and traces all his major achievements in 94 pages. It is crucial to understand that

the social and historical context in which Garvey was born had a profound impact on the man he

grew into. Jamaica in 1887, was reaping the benefits of the Post Emancipation era and many

nationals were establishing themselves and finding new means of employment. Garvey in his

later years, travelled to North America, the United Kingdom as well as Central America. It was

in Panama, where the Panama Canal was under construction that he witnessed the unfair

treatment of the African people who were working on the project, and the way they lacked a

sense of identity and the motivation to band together to fight for their rights and improve their
circumstances. This was a common trend and a challenge facing most of the African American

population and even the ex-enslaved in Jamaica. Thus, Garvey’s decision to stand up for the

rights of his fellow men and act as their voice and “spokesman”, in an attempt to promote a

Black identity and establish equality, is what lead to him founding the Universal Negro

Improvement Association (UNIA) which was the catalyst for the Pan Africanist ideology and

eventually the Black Power movement in the 1960’s and 1970’s. Therefore, the social and

historical context of Lewis’ writings can be seen as crucial to its understanding, as the lack of

equality of treatment of Africans across the world as well as the absent sense of community and

identity among his own people, is shown to be what prompted Garvey’s activism and largely

shaped his life and the lives of several around him.

It can be said that the book is extremely relevant to an understanding of the Caribbean

civilization because it presents an insight into the activities that shaped the face of the Caribbean

civilization that we know today; through the creation of a shared identity, community and raising

awareness on crucial issues that still face the Caribbean society today, such as family struggles

and the Eurocentric perspective applied to the education system, religion and many other social

institutions that make up our society. Garvey’s emphasis on the need for, and the creation of a

shared identity and community, prompts the reader to reflect on their own society and

contemplate whether they truly appreciate and value their identity which is undoubtedly a crucial

part of each individual. Thus, Lewis’ presentation of Garvey’s writings benefits Caribbean

civilizations as it promotes a sense of unity and shared identity. Furthermore, Lewis’ presentation

of Garvey’s broken family life highlights the longstanding impact of the plantation system on the

Caribbean today, and how the fractured relationships negatively impact individuals and their
ability to communicate and co-exist; a cause of many of the challenges, such as crime facing the

region still today. Finally, the book can be seen as relevant to Caribbean Civilizations as it

highlights the negative attitude towards local education still maintained by many today. Garvey’s

own attitude towards education in the Caribbean reflects the stigma that foreign schooling is

superior, emphasizing the impact of colonialism and the Eurocentric ideology it imparted on

Caribbean society. Thus, this is an attempt to raise awareness to the flawed local mindset in an

attempt to instigate a change.

Therefore, it must be noted that Lewis’ writings successfully and effectively present the

life of Marcus Garvey, as well as several crucial themes, such as Caribbean Identity, Caribbean

Family life, Religion, Education and Colonial resistance, all set against a pervasive and

compelling socio-historical background. Lewis’ writings, as well as the story of Garvey’s life

itself, has a profound impact upon Caribbean civilizations, promoting a shared community and

identity; as well as raising awareness on crucial issues that still challenge the West Indian people

to this day. It is for all these reasons that Lewis’ book can be considered a successful

autobiographical recount of the historical icon that is Marcus Garvey, a work that will surely

captivate readers now and in years to come.