Biden Posthumously Pardons Marcus Mosiah Garvey

On Sunday, in a historic moment, President Joe Biden posthumously pardoned Marcus Garvey, the legendary Black nationalist who laid the foundation for civil rights leaders like Malcolm X and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Garvey was convicted of mail fraud in the 1920s and was sentenced to five years in jail. 

Garvey’s conviction, widely viewed as politically motivated, resulted in his deportation to Jamaica, where he was born. He passed away in 1940.

Biden’s decision to pardon Garvey comes after years of advocacy from congressional leaders and supporters who argued that justice demanded this recognition. In 1987, Congressman John Conyers spearheaded official hearings before the House Judiciary Committee.

Nearly two decades later, in 2004, Congressman Charles Rangel reignited the fight, spotlighting the systemic injustices that tainted Garvey’s legacy. In 2022, Pulitzer Prize-winning author Karen Hunter started a petition to pardon Garvey. The petition, re-launched during Garvey’s anniversary birthday week last week, garnered over 9,000 signatures.

Biden left office on Monday, setting a record for the most individual pardons and commutations issued during a presidency. On Friday, he announced commutations for nearly 2,500 people convicted of nonviolent drug offenses, a bold statement in support of criminal justice reform. Biden framed these acts of clemency as aligning with what he called the “sacred covenant of our nation.”

“When people we love fall and make mistakes, we don’t turn on each other. We lean into each other,” Biden said while addressing a congregation at Royal Missionary Baptist Church in South Carolina. “That’s the sacred covenant of our nation. We pledge allegiance, not just to an idea, but to each other.”

Don Scott, the first Black speaker of the Virginia House of Delegates, also received a pardon. Convicted of a drug offense in 1994, Scott served eight years in prison.

In a statement, Scott said, “I am deeply humbled to share that I have received a Presidential Pardon… one that changed the course of my life and taught me the true power of redemption.”

Other recipients of presidential pardons include:

Ravi Ragbir, an immigrant rights activist who was convicted of a nonviolent offense in 2001 and faced deportation to Trinidad and Tobago.

Kemba Smith Pradia, a prison reform advocate who was convicted of a drug offense in 1994 and served six years of a 24-year sentence before President Bill Clinton commuted her sentence in 2000 and has since dedicated her life to advocating for change.

Darryl Chambers, a gun violence prevention advocate from Wilmington, Delaware, who was convicted of a drug offense and served 17 years in prison. Chambers now writes and speaks about solutions to end gun violence.