Amy Jacques Garvey

Amy Euphemia Jacques Garvey (31 December 1895 – 25 July 1973) was a Jamaican-born journalist and activist. She was the second wife of Marcus Garvey. She was one of the pioneering female Black journalists and publishers of the 20th century.

Early life and education Amy Euphemia Jacques was born on 31 December 1895 in Kingston, Jamaica. As the eldest child of George Samuel and Charlotte Henrietta, she was raised in a middle-class home. Charlotte Henrietta was biracial, and George Samuel was a dark-skinned Black man. Taylor

Amy Jacques Garvey was urged by her father to read periodicals and newspapers to "enhance" her knowledge of the world. Upon graduating school and receiving some of the highest honors of the time, Garvey was recruited to work at a law firm. She promised her employer and mother that she would return in three months if conditions in the U.S. were not suitable to her;

Adler says that Amy attended a conference being held by Marcus Garvey and was moved by his words, soon afterwards assuming the role of his private secretary and working alongside him and the Universal Negro Improvement Association (UNIA). She also became involved with the publishing of the Negro World newspaper in Harlem from its inception in August 1918.

Marriage and family On July 27, 1922, several months after his previous marriage was severed, Ashwood attempted to have the second marriage annulled and failed,

Leadership of UNIA

Jacques Garvey toured nationally as a public speaker, both with and without her husband. After a western tour, Marcus Garvey was scheduled to speak in New York without her on the program.

Amy Jacques Garvey was not scheduled to speak, however, in response to the overwhelming outcry from the crowd, the plans for the speech were altered. The grievances were made public at UNIA's national convention in 1922. Sexism found a means to thrive even in spite of UNIA's commitment to sexual equality. This being the case, women such as Amy Jacques Garvey, found a way to become invaluable to the organization.

While supporting her husband's ambitions and the UNIA, Garvey began to focus on her own writings which made her known within the black community. In the UNIA’s official newspaper, The Negro World, she’d have her own segment, “Our Women and What They Think”, where she focused on the struggles that Black Women in America face. As a Black feminist, she emphasized the importance of Black Women being educated in different aspects of life; in order to have a brighter future for the next generation, to live in a society where Black women aren’t seen as less than others.

In light of unforeseen circumstances, Garvey was forced to assume a lead role in UNIA after Marcus was convicted of mail fraud on 21 June 1922, less than a year after their marriage. It is at this time that Garvey assumed interim leadership of UNIA. In addition to speaking all over the country to raise money for Garvey's defense fund, she edited and published volume 2 of the Philosophy and Opinions of Marcus Garvey, two volumes of his poetry, The Tragedy of White Injustice and Selections from the Poetic Meditations of Marcus Garvey. While doing this she worked tirelessly with lawyers to get her husband out of jail, and kept the UNIA moving forward by delivering speeches and occasionally meeting with the leaders of the group. Despite the effort that Garvey put into keeping Marcus's dream alive, Marcus rarely showed appreciation towards her.

Life after UNIA

After her husband was deported in 1927, Garvey went with him to Jamaica. She remained with their children in Jamaica when Garvey moved to England in 1934.

She was awarded the Musgrave Medal in 1971.