Amy Ashwood Garvey –

The 110th anniversary of the birth of the two wives of national hero Marcus Garvey occur within two weeks of each other. Last week we carried a piece on Amy Jacques Garvey, the second wife who was born December 31. January 10 will mark the birthday of the first wife, Amy Ashwood Garvey. This is an insight into her life provided by the Africa Liberation Committee in Kingston.

Her tombstone proclaims her the co-founder of the Universal Negro Improvement Association (UNIA), the organisation founded by Marcus Garvey. This is probably an exaggeration. But what is not in doubt is that Amy Ashwood Garvey, first wife of Marcus Garvey, played a vital role in the establishment of the UNIA. Indeed it is true to say that certain features would not have taken place without her input.

But it is not only as a Garveyite that Amy Ashwood is to be remembered, as this period of her life was short-lived. After her separation from Garvey, she went on to live a full life making a significant contribution to the cause of Pan Africanism, feminism and community development in Britain, the Caribbean and West Africa.

Amy Ashwood was born in Port Antonio on January 10, 1897, the third child of Michael and Maudraine Ashwood. Her father was fairly well off economically and owned a bakery in Port Antonio, but later spread his business interests to Panama and Colombia. Amy attended school in Panama and Westwood High School, Trelawny. It was while at Westwood that she became racially conscious.

Amy was described as a precocious young person who, soon after leaving school, was involved in social welfare work and cultural activities – interests which continued until her death. One such activity was to organise regular debates at East Queen Street Baptist Church. It was at one of these sessions that she met the young Marcus Garvey who, as a member of the audience, supported her on the topic, Morality does not increase with civilisation.

Garvey was immediately struck by Amy, introduced himself to her after the meeting, and went to visit her the following day where he poured out all his hopes and dreams of setting up an organisation for the betterment of African people. The UNIA was launched shortly after and Amy became a founding member, its first member, according to her testimony. She played a principal role in its organisation, helping to form the ladies’ division of which she was secretary, to organise cultural activities and assist in fund-raising.

It is said that her parents disapproved of the relationship between herself and Garvey and she was encouraged to return to Panama. In the meantime, Garvey migrated to the United States where the movement he led began to grow by leaps and bounds. Amy eventually rejoined him and once again became an organiser for the UNIA. She was a platform speaker, worked on the newspaper the Negro World and served on the board of the Black Star Line. Eventually she and Garvey were married on Christmas Day in 1919. But there was an early separation the following year and Amy’s involvement with the UNIA ended.

From this time onwards she continued an expansive career as a social worker, journalist, political activist, playwright, restaurateur, feminist and Pan Africanist.

She helped to found the Nigerian Progress Union in 1924, a group which consisted of prominent Nigerians as well as other West Africans. Two years later she was back in the United States and authored and produced three musicals which played at the Lafayette theatre in Harlem. This was followed by a Caribbean tour to promote another musical revue.

She went to England in the 1930s where she opened her famous restaurant which was one place West Indians could get good West Indian dishes. It also became a haunt for famous Pan Africanists such as CLR James, George Padmore and Jomo Kenyatta who, besides savouring her tasty dishes, used the venue as a centre to discuss African affairs and plan strategies. Amy was an integral part of these plans.

It was also during this period that her last action in connection with Marcus Garvey occurred. She was there when he died and she had his body embalmed before interment.

Amy returned to Jamaica in the early 1940s, at a time of political ferment which followed the 1938 labour upheavals. It was a time when several fledgling parties were formed in addition to the mass parties of the JLP and the PNP. Amy contributed to this process and formed the JAG Smith Political Party with some other prominent persons. Nothing came of it, however. She also deepened her interest in women’s issues and tried to start a School of Domestic Science during this period.

Her next political foray was back in the United States when she actively participated in the campaign of Adam Clayton Powell, the first black person to be elected to Congress to represent New York.

But perhaps her most important political contribution was her work on the Fifth Pan African Congress held in Manchester, England in 1945. At this Congress various leaders from Africa, the Caribbean and the Americas met to discuss their political situation and future.

It became time for her to make a journey to Africa and this she did the following year. In a three-year sojourn she visited Ghana, Nigeria, Liberia where she lived for some time in addition to visiting Sierra Leone, Senegal and the Cameroons. In Africa she did extensive field work on women, looking at such issues as the family, women’s voluntary organisations and polygamy.

From West Africa she returned to England and from that time until her death engaged in extensive community work especially in England. She became a pioneer social worker among West Indian migrants who were just beginning to travel in droves to England. Once again she opened a restaurant and also a community centre. One of her most important roles during this period came during 1958 when the Notting Hill riots broke out in the very neighbourhood where she had her community centre.

These were race riots in which some white hoodlums attacked the new immigrants at random. So serious were these riots that then Premier Norman Manley felt compelled to fly to Britain to help cool things down. Amy was active on the various committees set up to try and diffuse the tense situation.

Amy made other various trips to the Caribbean and West Africa. In thes’50s she visited different West Indian countries promoting women’s issues. In Barbados she managed to persuade several women’s group to come together into Barbados’ Women’s Alliance. In West Africa she tried different business ventures which failed. She returned to Jamaica in 1968 and died on May 3, 1969.