As part of the 100th anniversary of U.S. Black History Month week, the legendary Pan-Africanist leader Marcus Mosiah Garvey will be posthumously honoured with a Black and Gold Heritage Plaque, to be installed at Trinity Baptist Church in Baltimore, Maryland.
The precursor to Black History Month was created in 1926 in the United States, when historian Carter G. Woodson and the Association for the Study of Negro Life and History (ASNLH) announced the second week of February to be “Negro History Week”. In the UK we celebrate in October.
Marcus Mosiah Garvey Jr. was born on August 17, 1887, in Saint Ann’s Bay, Jamaica. He grew up in a working-class family—his father earned a living as a stonemason, while his mother worked as a domestic helper. In his early years, Garvey traveled through several countries in Latin America, taking on different jobs along the way. He later moved to London, where he studied at Birkbeck College, part of the University of London. During this time, he also worked as a messenger and general assistant for the African Times and Orient Review, a publication that promoted Pan-African ideas and unity.
The plaque commemorates a historic three-day lecture series delivered by Marcus Garvey from 1–3 February 1922, hosted at the time by Reverend James R. L. Diggs. These lectures marked a significant moment in African-American and global African history, reinforcing Garvey’s enduring legacy of self-determination, unity, and empowerment.
Notably, this will be the first Heritage Plaque unveiled to a person of African heritage anywhere in the world in 2026, underscoring the global importance of Garvey’s contributions.
The event is being organised through a partnership between the U.S. branch of the Nubian Jak Community Trust, the Universal Negro Improvement Association (UNIA), and Trinity Baptist Church.
Representing the partner organisations will be:
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Stephen Golding, International Ambassador and Chair of the UNIA, Jamaica
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Dr Yana Johnson, Head of the U.S. Division, Nubian Jak Community Trust
- Rev. Dr. William C. Calhoun, Pastor of Trinity Baptist Church
Plaque Unveiling Details:
Venue: Trinity Baptist Church
Address:
1601 Druid Hill Avenue
Baltimore, MD 21217
USA
Time: 18:00 (6:00 PM)
