1919 – Marcus Garvey Launches Black Star Line Ships

On June 14, 1919, Marcus Garvey’s Universal Negro Improvement Association (UNIA) launched its first ship under the Black Star Line, a steamship company aimed at promoting global Black economic independence and repatriation to Africa. The shipping line symbolized Garvey’s Pan-African vision: connecting people of African descent through trade, transportation, and pride. The venture captured the imagination of millions of Black people globally and offered a powerful alternative to dependence on white-dominated systems. Though plagued by financial and political sabotage—including surveillance and interference by the FBI—the Black Star Line remains one of the most ambitious Black-led economic movements in history. It underscored the importance of ownership, infrastructure, and self-reliance in Black liberation ideology. Even after its collapse, the symbolism of the Black Star Line endures in Pan-African movements and continues to inspire leaders worldwide.