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The Class Appeal of Marcus Garvey's Propaganda and His Relationship with the Black American Left Through August 1920

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Date Issued:
2015
Abstract/Description:
This thesis examines the class appeal of Marcus Garvey's propaganda and his relationship with the black American left through the end of his movement's formative years to reveal aspects of his political thought that are not entirely represented in the historiography. Although several historians have addressed Garvey's affiliation with the black American left there has not yet been a consummate study on the nature of that relationship. This study examines the class element of Garvey's propaganda from his formative years through his radical phase, tracing the evolution of his ideas and attributing factors to those changes.Garvey influenced and was influenced by the labor movement and the class appeal of his propaganda was much stronger than historians have allowed. Garvey ultimately distanced himself and his program from the left for a number of reasons. The United States Justice Department's campaign to infiltrate his organization and remove him at the height of the Red Scare caused him to distance his program from the left. Since Garvey was pragmatic, not ideologically driven, and economic theory was secondary to black autonomy in his philosophy, increased criticism from former associates in the black American left, coupled with his exclusion from African-American intelligentsia, impacted his decision to embrace an alternative program. During the final years of his radical phase Garvey's ideas, program and relationships were impacted by a collision of the personal and political in his world. Understanding the complexity of Garvey's evolving ideology, and looking at the causes for those changes, are crucial to the study of the movement and its impact.
Title: The Class Appeal of Marcus Garvey's Propaganda and His Relationship with the Black American Left Through August 1920.
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Name(s): Cravero, Geoffrey, Author
Lester, Connie, Committee Chair
Walker, Ezekiel, Committee Member
Cassanello, Robert, Committee Member
University of Central Florida, Degree Grantor
Type of Resource: text
Date Issued: 2015
Publisher: University of Central Florida
Language(s): English
Abstract/Description: This thesis examines the class appeal of Marcus Garvey's propaganda and his relationship with the black American left through the end of his movement's formative years to reveal aspects of his political thought that are not entirely represented in the historiography. Although several historians have addressed Garvey's affiliation with the black American left there has not yet been a consummate study on the nature of that relationship. This study examines the class element of Garvey's propaganda from his formative years through his radical phase, tracing the evolution of his ideas and attributing factors to those changes.Garvey influenced and was influenced by the labor movement and the class appeal of his propaganda was much stronger than historians have allowed. Garvey ultimately distanced himself and his program from the left for a number of reasons. The United States Justice Department's campaign to infiltrate his organization and remove him at the height of the Red Scare caused him to distance his program from the left. Since Garvey was pragmatic, not ideologically driven, and economic theory was secondary to black autonomy in his philosophy, increased criticism from former associates in the black American left, coupled with his exclusion from African-American intelligentsia, impacted his decision to embrace an alternative program. During the final years of his radical phase Garvey's ideas, program and relationships were impacted by a collision of the personal and political in his world. Understanding the complexity of Garvey's evolving ideology, and looking at the causes for those changes, are crucial to the study of the movement and its impact.
Identifier: CFE0005593 (IID), ucf:50245 (fedora)
Note(s): 2015-05-01
M.A.
Arts and Humanities, History
Masters
This record was generated from author submitted information.
Subject(s): Marcus Garvey -- UNIA -- Universal Negro Improvement Association -- Garveyism -- Black American Left -- Black Intelligentsia -- African-American Intelligentsia -- Black Socialism -- Pan-Africanism -- Black Nationalism -- Black Autonomy
Persistent Link to This Record: http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0005593
Restrictions on Access: public 2015-05-15
Host Institution: UCF

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