Assignment Task: Michael Dawson argues, "Black nationalists have grappled with three overlapping definitions of 'the' black nation." What are these three definitions? Which of these definitions are best attributed to Marcus Garvey?
In Black Visions, Dawson (2001), highlights three major tenets of the "Black Nation" that critically defines who and what is meant by black Nationalism. The first is State, Power and Land. In many Black nationalist organizations, you see this as the foremost focus - the right to self-govern. From early 20th century when the Unite Negro Improvement Association (UNIA), which sought to have Afrikans in America go back to Afrika, to sixties with the Republic of New Africa (RNA), which aimed to acquire five southern states to become sovereign African nations here in America. Black Nationalism leans heavily on the desire for Afrikan people to function autonomously, and to own their own land. Secondly, Dawson suggests Afrikan Americans should be considered as a separate group of people outside of having any American identification, and that self-determination should be at the crux of their existence. Marcus Garvey heavily emphasized the need for self-reliance. He believed Black people needed to rely on themselves to overcome oppression, and that they should not rely on chance or hand out. The third description Dawson indicates is the Black nation is "a community with a defined and unique spiritual and cultural identity". As such, in many Black Nationalist communities the people may not practice Christianity, the dominant religion of America, and may instead be part of indigenous African traditions. Names may have been changed to be replaced with Afrikan names, and clothes are of African attire. But beyond the aesthetics, the Black community is unique because of the many shared experiences before, during, and after slavery.