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BumRushDaShow

(144,186 posts) Wed Dec 25, 2024, 05:38 AM 13 hrs ago

Congress members urge Biden to exonerate Black civil rights leader Marcus Garvey

Last edited Wed Dec 25, 2024, 08:27 AM - Edit history (2)

Source: ABC News

December 24, 2024, 7:01 PM

A group of 21 House Democrats signed a letter urging the president to exonerate former civil rights leader Marcus Garvey, according to a statement sent by the lawmakers to ABC News on Monday. Congresswoman Yvette D. Clarke (D-NY) led the panel of lawmakers -- mostly from the Congressional Black Caucus -- to exonerate Garvey on the heels of President Joe Biden's commutation of 37 sentences from federal death row on Monday.

Garvey, one of the earliest internationally-known Black civil rights leaders, was convicted of mail fraud in 1923 and was given a five-year sentence, according to a letter sent to Biden from the Congress members, obtained by ABC News. President Calvin Coolidge pardoned Garvey two years into his sentence. Garvey was immediately deported to his birth country of Jamaica.

"Exonerating Mr. Garvey would honor his work for the Black community, remove the shadow of an unjust conviction, and further this administration's promise to advance racial justice," the lawmakers said in the letter to the president. "At a time when Black history faces the existential threat of erasure by radical state legislatures, a presidential pardon for Mr. Garvey would correct the historical record and restore the legacy of an American hero."

Congress members have been trying for decades to clear Garvey's name, according to the congress members. Congressman John Conyers led hearings in 1987 for the House Judiciary Committee on Garvey's exoneration. Congressman Charles Rangel introduced resolutions, highlighting alleged injustices against the former civil rights leader in 2004.

Jamaican born African American nationalist Marcus Garvey, circa, 1920.
Library of Congress

Read more: https://abcnews.go.com/US/congress-members-urge-biden-exonerate-black-civil-rights/story?id=117087620

Link to LETTER - CLARKE LEADS LETTER TO PRESIDENT BIDEN URGING THE EXONERATION OF MARCUS GARVEY

Link to LETTER (PDF viewer) - https://drive.google.com/file/d/1vLj3OI15EAyZuBsUFe73Qu1RDfXqJM8I/view

9 replies

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Highlight:

Congress members urge Biden to exonerate Black civil rights leader Marcus Garvey (Original Post) BumRushDaShow 13 hrs ago OP

I hope he does. It would be a wonderful thing ... littlemissmartypants 12 hrs ago #1

Did the president gain new powers overnight and I missed it? FBaggins 12 hrs ago #2

I added links to the press release/letter in the OP BumRushDaShow 11 hrs ago #3

It would be symbolic, like when the state of Florida declared that Jose Garcia 10 hrs ago #4

Does the president have the power to do that? nycbos 10 hrs ago #5

I think the use of the term BumRushDaShow 9 hrs ago #6

Rigjt nycbos 8 hrs ago #7

Sure but the term "exonerate" would still mean the same thing BumRushDaShow 8 hrs ago #8

This is how Dems are spending their time right now? We are so eff'd. jvill 5 hrs ago #9

littlemissmartypants

(25,889 posts)

1. I hope he does. It would be a wonderful thing ...

Reply to BumRushDaShow (Original post)

Wed Dec 25, 2024, 07:06 AM

12 hrs ago

And would go a long way towards making him a president of note for racial and social justice while also correcting the historical record and restoring the legacy of Mr. Garvey.

It sure has been a long time coming and he's the perfect President to do it.

❤️

FBaggins

(27,802 posts)

2. Did the president gain new powers overnight and I missed it?

Reply to BumRushDaShow (Original post)

Wed Dec 25, 2024, 07:09 AM

12 hrs ago

There are differences between commutations and pardons - but neither exonerates the recipient.

An important distinction because we’re about to have a president who would love to have the later power.

BumRushDaShow

(144,186 posts)

3. I added links to the press release/letter in the OP

Reply to FBaggins (Reply #2)

Wed Dec 25, 2024, 08:32 AM

11 hrs ago

From the opening of the press release -

CLARKE LEADS LETTER TO PRESIDENT BIDEN URGING THE EXONERATION OF MARCUS GARVEY

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

December 23, 2024

MEDIA CONTACT:

e: jessica.myers@mail.house.gov

c: 202.913.0126

Washington, DC – Congresswoman Yvette D. Clarke (D-NY) led 20 of her colleagues in a letter to President Biden urging the exoneration of Marcus Mosiah Garvey for a 1923 conviction for the fraudulent use of the mail:

“Exactly 101 years ago, Mr. Garvey was convicted of mail fraud in a case that was marred by prosecutorial and governmental misconduct. The evidence paints an abundantly clear narrative that the charges against Mr. Garvey were not only fabricated but also targeted to criminalize, discredit, and silence him as a civil rights leader. In response to this blatant injustice, President Calvin Coolidge commuted Mr. Garvey’s sentence upon eligibility. Efforts to clear Garvey’s name have persisted for decades. In 1987, under Congressman John Conyers’ leadership, the House Judiciary Committee held hearings on Mr. Garvey’s exoneration. In 2004, Congressman Charles Rangel introduced a series of resolutions calling attention to the injustice, followed by Congresswoman Yvette D. Clarke’s recent efforts to continue these strides. Despite these efforts, Garvey’s name has not yet been cleared,” wrote the Members.

“Exonerating Mr. Garvey would honor his work for the Black community, remove the shadow of an unjust conviction, and further this administration’s promise to advance racial justice. At a time when Black history faces the existential threat of erasure by radical state legislatures, a presidential pardon for Mr. Garvey would correct the historical record and restore the legacy of an American hero. As we approach the conclusion of your administration, this moment provides a chance to leave an indelible mark on history.”

The full text of the letter is available here.

###

You need to understand the context of the terms she is using, particularly with respect to this subject.

Jose Garcia

(2,918 posts)

4. It would be symbolic, like when the state of Florida declared that

Reply to FBaggins (Reply #2)

Wed Dec 25, 2024, 09:00 AM

10 hrs ago

the 2017 University of Central Florida football team were the national champions.

nycbos

(6,395 posts)

5. Does the president have the power to do that?

Reply to BumRushDaShow (Original post)

Wed Dec 25, 2024, 09:29 AM

10 hrs ago

BumRushDaShow

(144,186 posts)

6. I think the use of the term

Reply to nycbos (Reply #5)

Wed Dec 25, 2024, 10:02 AM

9 hrs ago

is in the modern sense of what would be covered with a "pardon" (removal of the conviction, where his sentence only, had been commuted by Calvin Coolidge a century ago).

I.e., Garvey had pretty much settled in NYC, Yvette Clarke is a Rep. in NYC, and you have a parallel of the "Central Park 5" being part of a notorious case where the defendants were "exonerated" (convictions thrown out).

nycbos

(6,395 posts)

7. Rigjt

Reply to BumRushDaShow (Reply #6)

Wed Dec 25, 2024, 11:02 AM

8 hrs ago

But a court through out their convictions.

BumRushDaShow

(144,186 posts)

8. Sure but the term "exonerate" would still mean the same thing

Reply to nycbos (Reply #7)

Wed Dec 25, 2024, 11:18 AM

8 hrs ago

whether the court disagrees with a jury that convicts someone or whether the President of the U.S. disagrees with a jury that convicts someone (per the U.S. Constitution), the latter basically doing the same thing as a court.

jvill

(401 posts)

9. This is how Dems are spending their time right now? We are so eff'd.

Reply to BumRushDaShow (Original post)

Wed Dec 25, 2024, 01:48 PM

5 hrs ago

Yvette D. Clarke was my congresscritter for about 10 years.
Totally useless.
This might very well be the first time in a decade I've ever seen her name in print and not on a fundraising mailer.

I moved to Westchester 2 years ago and I see Mump regime Rep Mike Lawler everywhere with his name on things that matter.

So so very eff'd.

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