garveyism means the black nationalist policies of Marcus Garvey (1887–1940), Jamaican journalist and racial campaigner. Lexicurio rates it Sui generis — a strength score of 96 out of 100.
Why “garveyism” is a great word
Garveyism is a black nationalist political philosophy advocating racial pride, economic self-sufficiency, and the establishment of a sovereign black nation in Africa. From the surname Garvey (of Marcus Garvey) + the suffix -ism, denoting a distinctive practice, system, or philosophy. Unlike the broader intellectual tradition of Pan-Africanism, which emphasizes solidarity, or the reformist goal of Integrationism, which seeks assimilation, Garveyism was its most potent, mass-mobilizing strand of defiant separatism and physical return. It was the sound of a thousand uniforms marching in a Harlem parade, the heft of a UNIA membership card, and the rustle of shares in the Black Star Line—a militant dream of building a kingdom from the dust of diaspora, offered as an antidote to a world that refused to be shared.
Etymology
From Garvey + -ism.
noun
- The black nationalist policies of Marcus Garvey (1887–1940), Jamaican journalist and racial campaigner.