Race First: The Ideological and Organizational Struggles of Marcus Garvey and the Universal Negro Improvement Association (New Marcus Garvey Library, No. 8) [Paperback]

Tony Martin (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Martin's study is the most thoroughly researched book on Garvey's ideas ...." CHOICE

Race First is as close to a definitive study of Marcus Garvey as we have seen...." John Henrik Clarke, JAMAICA JOURNAL


"...a well conceived, exhaustively researched, skilfully executed book...." Genna Rae McNeil, JOURNAL OF NEGRO HISTORY

About the Author

Dr. Tony Martin is Emeritus Professor of Africana Studies at Wellesley College. He taught earlier at the University of Michigan-Flint. He has been a visiting professor at the University of Minnesota, Brandeis University, Brown University and The Colorado College. He spent a year as an honorary research fellow at the University of the West Indies, Trinidad.

Professor Martin has authored, compiled or edited 14 books including Caribbean History: From Pre-Colonial Origins to the Present (2012) published by Pearson. Earlier works include Amy Ashwood Garvey: Pan-Africanist, Feminist and Mrs. Marcus Garvey No. 1, Or, A Tale of Two Amies, Literary Garveyism: Garvey, Black Arts and the Harlem Renaissance, and the classic study of the Garvey Movement, Race First: the Ideological and Organizational Struggles of Marcus Garvey and the Universal Negro Improvement Association (1976).
Martin qualified as a barrister-at-law at the Honorable Society of Gray's Inn in 1965, did a B.Sc. honours degree in economics at the University of Hull, and the M.A. and Ph.D. in history at Michigan State University.

Martin's articles and reviews have appeared in the Journal of African American History; African Studies Review; Washington Post Book World; Journal of Caribbean History; Journal of American History and elsewhere.

His writings appear in such reference works as the UNESCO General History of the Caribbean; the Oxford Dictionary of National Biography and American National Biography. His awards include a grant from the American Philosophical Society. He has reviewed articles and programs for scholarly journals, the National Endowment for the Humanities, and the Austrian Science Fund. His biographical listings can be found in Who's Who in America; Who's Who in the World; Personalities Caribbean; Who's Who Among African Americans; and elsewhere. He has been a reviewer and consultant for publishers and has served as an expert witness for Congressional hearings.             

Product Details

• Paperback: 421 pages
• Publisher: The Majority Press; 2nd edition (September 1986)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0912469234
• ISBN-13: 978-0912469232
• Product Dimensions: 8.1 x 5.2 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #576,599 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Professor Tony Martin is Emeritus Professor of Africana Studies at Wellesley College, Massachusetts, where he taught from 1973 to 2007. Prior to coming to Wellesley, he taught at the University of Michigan-Flint, the Cipriani Labour College (Trinidad), and St. Mary's College (Trinidad). He has been a visiting professor at the University of Minnesota, Brandeis University, Brown University, and The Colorado College. He also spent a year as an honorary research fellow at the University of the West Indies, Trinidad.

Professor Martin has authored, compiled or edited 14 books. His most recent is Caribbean History: From Pre-Colonial Origins to the Present (2012) published by Pearson. Earlier works include Amy Ashwood Garvey: Pan-Africanist, Feminist and Mrs. Marcus Garvey No. 1, Or, A Tale of Two Amies (2007), Literary Garveyism: Garvey, Black Arts and the Harlem Renaissance (1983), and the classic study of the Garvey Movement, Race First: the Ideological and Organizational Struggles of Marcus Garvey and the Universal Negro Improvement Association (1976).

Martin qualified as a barrister-at-law at the Honourable Society of Gray's Inn (London) in 1965, did a B.Sc. honours degree in economics at the University of Hull (England), and the M.A. and Ph.D. in history at Michigan State University.

Martin's articles and reviews have appeared in such journals as the Journal of Negro History; Journal of African American History; American Historical Review; African Studies Review; Washington Post Book World; Journal of Caribbean History; Journal of American History; Black Books Bulletin; Jamaica Journal; Comparative Studies of South Asia, Africa and the Middle East; and many others.

His writings can be found in several reference works and encyclopedias, including the UNESCO General History of the Caribbean; the Oxford Dictionary of National Biography; American National Biography; the Encyclopedia of African American Business History; International Encyclopedia of the Social Sciences; and Encyclopedia of the Harlem Renaissance. He has received numerous academic and community awards, including a grant from the American Philosophical Society. He has reviewed articles and programs for scholarly journals, the National Endowment for the Humanities, and the Austrian Science Fund. His biographical listings can be found in Who's Who in America; Who's Who in the World; Who's Who Among America's Teachers; Personalities Caribbean; Who's Who Among African Americans; and elsewhere. He has been a reviewer and consultant for publishers and has served as an expert witness for Congressional hearings.

Martin is well known as a lecturer in many countries. He has spoken to university and general audiences all over the United States, Canada, the Caribbean, and England, as well as in Africa, Australia, Bermuda, and South America. In 1990 he delivered the annual DuBois/Padmore/Nkrumah Pan-African lectures in Ghana. In 2004 he was one of the principal speakers at the First Conference of Intellectuals of Africa and the Diaspora, which was sponsored by the African Union in Senegal.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Outstanding and Brilliantly Written, June 28, 2000

By 

Damani Keene (Maryland - US) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Race First: The Ideological and Organizational Struggles of Marcus Garvey and the Universal Negro Improvement Association (New Marcus Garvey Library, No. 8) (Paperback)

Dr. Tony Martin has provided an in-depth historical account and analysis of Marcus Garvey's heroic agitation on behalf of African people's freedom world-wide.

Dr. Martin effectively conveys a sense of the profound mission on which Marcus Garvey launched himself and his organization, the UNIA. Garvey understood the importance of psychology as well as economics and Dr. Martin's book describes his efforts, successful and unsuccessful, to achieve his very ambitious goals.

"Race First", for example, lists the states and countries that were the homes of the 996 chapters of the UNIA on five continents and in the Caribbean. Dr. Martin also describes how the U.S. and colonial governments conspired to block the UNIA's program and even the distribution of its newspaper (printed in three languages).

This book is indispensable to understanding modern American, African and world history and especially to understanding the "Black/African Nationalist" impulse of Africans in the Diaspora.

9 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars awesome, informative, well-researched, January 17, 2003

By 

M. B. Fielder "micky-b" (Somerset, NJ USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Race First: The Ideological and Organizational Struggles of Marcus Garvey and the Universal Negro Improvement Association (New Marcus Garvey Library, No. 8) (Paperback)

I read this book several years ago and was so impressed with the research, the detail, the style and the care that Tony Martin took to tell the Marcus Garvey story.

It is a wonderfully balanced look at his successes, his failures, his faith in God and most of all his impact on our nation.

I highly recommend this to history lovers of all backgrounds. You won't be disappointed.

5.0 out of 5 stars Another Triumph for Tony Martin!, October 13, 2011

By 

Adalberto McFarlane "Neteru Amun Ra Ptah Hotep" (California) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Race First: The Ideological and Organizational Struggles of Marcus Garvey and the Universal Negro Improvement Association (New Marcus Garvey Library, No. 8) (Paperback)

RACE First, is a book that is needed to effectively analyze Marcus Garvey's aims, plans, and goals for the UNIA and the Afrikan Diaspora. Tony Martin has done thorough research into the ideologies, conspiracies, enemies, mistakes, and dreams of this once mighty organization. This book needs to be added to any Afrikan's library concerning self-reliance, self-betterment, and Afrikan history. This book, along with Garvey's Philosophies and Opinions should be right next to Booker T. Washington's Up From Slavery. Learn and enjoy!