|
|
|
Movie Review
Marcus Garvey: Look for Me in the Whirlwind. Prod. by Stanley Nelson. Firelight/Half Nelson Productions, 2001. 90 mins. (PBS Video, 1320 Braddock Place, Alexandria, VA 22314-1698)
|
Marcus Garvey recounts the life of the charismatic Jamaican activist who created the Universal Negro Improvement Association (UNIA). Garvey believed that, although black workers were the productive force that drove the world's economy, they remained powerless because they were divided. Convinced that he could unite blacks internationally, Garvey created the UNIA, an organization dedicated to raising racial consciousness, creating black businesses, and reclaiming "Africa for Africans." In the 1920s the UNIA grew quickly. It was fueled both by Garvey's charisma and by the hunger of people of African descent for Garvey's message of racial pride and financial uplift. The UNIA fell apart almost as quickly, however, because of both external harassment and Garvey's own personality flaws. The film concludes with a compelling account of Garvey's Black Star shipping line and its destruction by external sabotage and internal incompetence and corruption. Problems involving the Black Star line led to Garvey's trial and imprisonment for mail fraud. Garvey was ultimately exiled from the United States and spent his final days in poverty and obscurity. |
. . . |
There are about 340 more words in this article.
Please log in (or, if you are not yet an
authorized user, please go to the
User Setup page) to gain full access rights. Or if you're already logged in register your subscription.
|