Biden Posthumously Pardons Marcus Garvey in Final Acts of Clemency

by

In this August 1922 file photo, Marcus Garvey is shown in a military uniform as the "Provisional President of Africa" during a parade on the opening day of the annual Convention of the Negro Peoples of the World along Lenox Avenue in Harlem borough of New York. President Joe Biden on Sunday posthumously pardoned Black nationalist Marcus Garvey, who influenced leaders like Malcolm X and was convicted of mail fraud in the 1920s, and pardoned immigrant rights activist Ravi Ragbir and criminal justice reform advocate Kemba Smith Pradia. (AP Photo/File)
Reading Time: < 1 minute

The day before he left office, President posthumously pardoned Marcus Garvey.

Garvey, convicted of mail fraud in the 1920s, was widely believed to be a victim of politically motivated charges. Biden also pardoned advocates for immigrant rights, criminal justice reform, and gun violence prevention, as well as a Virginia lawmaker.

Biden framed the clemency as reflecting America’s “sacred covenant” of unity and redemption, emphasizing that Americans “lean into each other” when mistakes are made.

Notably, he also commuted nearly 2,500 sentences for nonviolent drug offenses, setting a record for presidential clemency.

Garvey’s legacy remains powerful, with Martin Luther King Jr. calling him the first to give millions of Black people “a sense of dignity and destiny.”


Click play to listen to the AURN News report from Clay Cane. Follow @claycane & @aurnonline for more.

AURN Podcast Network


advanced divider
advanced divider

NEWS