Last modified: 2024-03-30 by rick wyatt
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image by Rick Wyatt, 5 April 1998
Green, black, and red are the Garvey colors, after Marcus Garvey, a civil rights movement leader. If I recall correctly, he promoted the "returning to Africa" -- if not geographically, at least by "rediscovering" the ancestral heritage of
African Americans.
Antonio Martins, 11 December 1997
The colors are as represented on the flag, Red, Black and Green (not Green, black and red ) and did indeed evolve from Marcus Garvey's UNIA movement. However, the colors were adopted by an international assemblage of 25 countries of the African diaspora, thereby making the colors international.
African Americans have held proudly onto their banner for the past 78 years hoisting it under various titles: International African Flag, The African Flag, Pan African Flag, Liberation Flag, Black Flag, African American Flag, Afro-American Flag and others. Yes, the colors were hoisted first in the United States and, it represents all peoples of the African Diaspora regardless of land of birth.
Rasta colors and The Pan African (Garvey Flag) colors not the same and should not be confused. Rasta colors are the Ethiopian colors of green, gold and red.
Beatrice C. Jones, 16 November 1998
The RED, BLACK and GREEN Flag was unveiled to the world by the Honorable Marcus Mosiah Garvey and the members of the Universal Negro Improvement Association and African Communities League, of the World at it's first international convention on August 13, 1920. The UNIA-ACL knew that Africans at home and abroad needed their own flag as other flags around the world could not represent the collective of African people.
The use of Red, Black and Green as colors symbolizing African nationhood was first "adopted by the UNIA-ACL as part of the 1920 Declaration of Rights as the official colors of the African race. The question of a flag for the race was not as trivial as might have appeared on the surface, for in the United States especially, the lack of an African symbol of nationhood seems to have been cause for crude derision on the part of whites and a source of sensitivity on the part of Afro-Americans.
The race catechism Garveyites used explained the significance of the red, black, and green as for the "color of the blood which men must shed for their redemption and liberty", black for "the color of the noble and distinguished race to which we belong," and green for "the luxuriant vegetation of our Motherland.
Nnamdi Azikewe, 12 April 2000
My understanding is that Garvey thought (erroneously) that these were the colors of ancient Ethiopia - the Ethiopia of today was known as Abyssinia at the time Garvey proposed the flag.
Devereaux Cannon and Ned Smith, 10 July 1999
My understanding is that Marcus Garvey was thinking of contemporary Ethiopia, which in the 1920's was the only African country that had never been colonized. He became aware of his error as to its national colors at the time of Haile Selassie's coronation as emperor, but by that time the red/black/green flag was too well established to be changed.
John Ayer, 10 July 1999
Above, it is discussed how black-red-green is a mistaken depiction of the
red-black-green horizontal tricolor flag. I come across a quote stressing the
point that the latter is the one canonical order and all other permutations are
deemed as mistakes: In Spike Lee’s film Bamboozled, character Sloan, a
non-activist black woman, refers to the "black, red, and green flag" only to be
corrected by activist Julius: "It’s red, black, and green: everybody knowns it’s
red, black, and green;" (even) "white people know it’s red, black, and green."
(See e.g.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bamboozled for more information about the
film.)
António Martins-Tuválkin, 27 February 2024
image by Tomislav Todorovic, 8 August 2011
This variant of Garvey's flag has unchanged color order, but is amended with a large outline of Africa in white. I have seen it offered for sale at several web shops, such as here: www.acaciawoodcarvings.com.
Tomislav Todorovic, 8 August 2011
Another source is
http://media.mlive.com/flint-journal/photo/9717317-standard.jpg (from
http://photos.mlive.com/flint-journal/2011/06/post_1255.html), photo taken
at the Juneteenth parade 2011.
Steve Shumaker, 19 June 2012
image by Tomislav Todorovic, 8 August 2011
This variant of Garvey's flag has unchanged color order, but is amended with a red star in center of the black field was seen in Oakland, California in 1989, at the funeral of Huey Newton, co-founder of the Black Panther Party. The photos from the event can be seen here:
www.painetworks.com/previews/hl/hl0618.html?clientid=IDABXORB&ln=en&text=
and here:
www.painetworks.com/previews/hl/hl2463.html?clientid=IDABXORB&ln=en&text=
It was certainly brought there by the Black Panthers' sympathizers, but is yet to be found if it was their official flag as well. So far, no evidence is available on the Web. It might be worth noting, though, that it seems that the New Black Panther Party, their self-designated successor, makes use of plain red-black-green flag only - at least, only that one was seen in the photos related to them so far.
Tomislav Todorovic, 8 August 2011
This flag is definitely used by the African People's Socialist Party
(APSP)
Tomislav Todorovic, 7 February 2015
image by Tomislav Todorovic, 7 August 2011
This variant of African-American flag uses the colors introduced by Marcus Garvey, but in a different
order:
The black-red-green flag has first appeared on a stamp issued by the United States Postal Service in 1997 to commemorate Kwanzaa, the African-American yearly celebration [1]. Compared with the Garvey's flag, it has the black and red fields with swapped places, so it might have been created as an error [2]. Still there are examples of its use in real life, like the African-American Parade in Cleveland, Ohio, on 2011-06-04, where at least one such flag was carried among many red-black-green flags [3]. There is also a blog entry about Kwanzaa [4] with two accompanied photos, one showing an African woman holding the said flag and another one showing the same woman with a little Caucasian girl before the kinara (the Kwanzaa candle holder), which is set upon a spread flag with this design.
Sources:
[1] Wikipedia page about Kwanzaa: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kwanzaa
[2] Wikipedia page about Garvey's flag: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/African_American_Flag
[3] ClevelandPeople.Com website: www.clevelandpeople.com/groups/africanamerican/2011/parade.htm
[4] Rimadyl For Dogs blog: blog, Image 1, Image 2
Tomislav Todorovic, 7 August 2011
image by Tomislav Todorovic, 9 May 2015
Very rarely, Garvey's flag is used with the reversed color order - green-black-red. One example is from protests in Hartford, CT in August 2014 [1]. While there is the possibility that the flag used there was just the red-black-green one which was held upside-down, that is definitely not the case in the video for song "Weapon X" by hip-hop group X Clan, where the green-black-red flag is attached to a hand-held staff in a way which leaves no place for doubt. The flag can be seen, together with an Ethiopian flag (with the lion), several times during the video [2].
Sources:
image by Tomislav Todorovic, 14 January 2021
The red-green-black flag was hoisted in Buffalo on 2019-06-07 at the beginning of the Juneteenth Festival. The video from the flag raising ceremony can be viewed here: https://www.wivb.com/news/local-news/juneteenth-flag-raised-in-buffalo.image by Michael P. Smuda, 6 November 1998
I found another Afro-American flag while surfing the web. This flag was developed in 1989 in South Central L.A.
According to their site, www.afroamericanflag.com, the symbolism of the colors is as follows:
GOLD is for the richness of the people
BLACK is for the people
RED is for the blood shed
Green is for the earth
Dov Gutterman, 6 November 1998
I have never heard of this one. The red/black/green flag is made by all flag manufacturers. My guess is that this is a private venture.
Rick Wyatt, 8 November 1998
image by Tomislav Todorovic, 11 January 2015
Cecil Lee's first public showing of the African American Flag of Inclusion was in 1999 at a one man art show at Gallery X in Harlem. In 1998 he coined the term "Computer Evolved Multi-medium Art" a form of computer art from which the
acronym "CEMA" is derived.
Created in 1999 the "African American Flag of Inclusion" represents a concept that has long been part of many an African American's psyche, expressing a reality many of us consciously or unconsciously have acknowledged. It is also an identifying motif intended to represent all African Americans regardless of their individual beliefs or political
affiliations.
A symbol whose time has come The African American Flag of Inclusion reaches beyond religious, political and philosophical beliefs reflecting the African Americans' unique contributions and accomplishments toward the inventiveness, creativity, building, growth and stability of the United States of America.
The elements of the African American Flag of Inclusion stand for:
red = life/blood, family, vitality & oneness
black = the people, strength, depth & influence
green = earth, evolution, growth & progress
stars & stripes = equality & unification
Source: ceelee.com/flag/index.htm
Nelson Román, 2 November 2003
image by Rick Wyatt, 3 December 2001
Meaning of the Stars:
image by Paul San Pavlos, 27 December 2002
I observed in Santa Barbara. It was labeled: "Flag of Afro-Americans by the Afro-American Community Services Organization." I have neither been able to locate them on the web or in the Santa Barbara phone directory. I know nothing more about this flag, its usage, origins, etc.
Paul San Pavlos, 27 December 2002
image by Pete Loeser, 7 December 2016
This flag has been seen about five miles from Springfield, Massachusetts, and has been determined to be the African-American Heritage Flag. It was developed about 20 years ago
[i.e., the 1980s] and has been marketed by the designer. It does not have any official status. The wreath and sword refer to traditional African symbols.
Michael Faul and Whitney Smith, 19 January 2005
I had this flag in the 1970s as part of my collection of Black American History studies. I gave it to an artist friend of mine to make a painting of it and never saw it again.
Alvin Collins, 6 December 2016
The Black American Heritage flag was designed in 1967 by Melvin Charles and Gleason T. Jackson. According to the designers, "...the elements of the flag include the color black to represent pride and pigmentation and race; red, to remind us of the rich blood black men have shed for freedom, equality, justice and human dignity throughout the world; and gold, to represent intellect, prosperity, and peace. These colors are woven into a composition that juxtaposes the red and black in a set of three stripes: one black stripe centered between two red."
"Superimposed on the black stripe is a golden wreath of fig leaves. The cultivated fig is a native of Africa, and ranks as one of the most ancient of life-sustaining fruits. Centered within the golden wreath is a blunted Moorish boarding sword, symbol of leadership carried by the great Moorish leaders of the 8th century. The sword represents the strength and authority exhibited by a black culture that made many contributions to the world in mathematics, art, medicine, and physical science, heralding the contributions that black Americans would make in these and other fields."
source: Historical Flags of Our Ancestors
Pete Loeser, 7 December 2016
image by Tomislav Todorovic, 20 June 2012
The flag shown here was carried in Washington, D.C. on 20 January 2009 by some people who attended the inauguration of President Barack Obama. It resembles one of the flags reported to have appeared at the at Juneteenth parade in 2011, but the stars are green here. The photo of the flag can be seen here: cache.jezebel.com/assets/images/39/2009/01/medium_african_american_flag.jpg
Tomislav Todorovic, 20 June 2012
Three variants of the U.S. flag repainted in Garvey colors were reported by Steve Shumaker. Here follows the info about their creator and meanings of each of them. Each of them has a name of its own.
These flags, known under the common name of All American Flags, are created by Carl Sharif of Newark, New Jersey, and sold by his company Us For Once, Inc. More details about the company at its website:
www.usforonce.com/about.html.
All American Flag, Mainlander:
image by Pete Loeser and Tomislav Todorovic, 7 October 2012
The flag with seven black and six green stripes and red stars on black canton is dedicated to the memory of all Africans who lost their lives during the Middle Passage, which is another name for slave trade. Black stripes stand for their deaths and green ones for their youth, for most of them were young people. Black canton stands for the African origins of the flag users and red for the blood spilled by their ancestors, not only during the Middle Passage, but also during the latter sufferings and struggles in America. As such, the flag is also recommended for use at the funerals.
More details here: www.usforonce.com/middle_passage.html
All American Flag, Islander:
image by Pete Loeser and Tomislav Todorovic, 7 October 2012
While the canton is identical as on the previous flag and given the same meaning, the stripes are repainted into Garvey colors, alternating black (topmost), green and red and ending with black at the bottom. The flag design denotes that African traditions in the New World are best preserved in the Caribbean Islands and South America and also reminds of
the fact that Marcus Garvey was a native of Jamaica.
More details here:
www.usforonce.com/islander.html
All American Flag, Middle Passage:
image by Pete Loeser and Tomislav Todorovic, 7 October 2012
While sharing the same canton and its meaning with two other flags, this flag has seven red and six green stripes. Intentionally made to be the most similar with the U.S. national flag, it is meant to represent the North American people of African origin and their struggles and sacrifices.
More details here: www.usforonce.com/mainlander.html
Pete Loeser and Tomislav Todorovic, 7 October 2012
Another source is
http://media.mlive.com/flint-journal/photo/9717403-standard.jpg, from
http://photos.mlive.com/flint-journal/2011/06/post_1261.html photo
taken at the Juneteenth parade 2011.
Steve Shumaker, 19 June 2012
image by Pete Loeser and Tomislav Todorovic, 7 October 2012
This flag is derived from the USA national flag by repainting it as follows:
the canton is black, the stars are red and the stripes are in Garvey colors,
alternating black (topmost), green and red and ending with black at the bottom.
This is actually identical to the All American Flag, Islander
by Carl Sharif but it is not clear if there are any connections. Under this
newly discovered name, the flag was used at the Martin Luther King, Jr.
African-American Heritage Rodeo, which takes place in Denver, Colorado. Its
currently available photos date from 2016 [1, 2], 2017 [3] and 2018 [4].
Sources:
[1] Library of Congress website - Photo of Black American
National Flag, taken on 2016-01-18:
http://www.loc.gov/pictures/item/2017686727/
[2] Library of Congress
website - Photo of Black American National Flag, taken on 2016-01-18:
http://www.loc.gov/pictures/item/2017686728/
[3] GettyImages photo
archive - Photo of Black American National Flag, taken on 2017-01-16
(information hidden within the page source code):
https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/cowgirl-presents-the-black-american-national-flag-at-the-news-photo/631857536
[4] CBS Denver website - Photo of Black American National Flag, taken on
2018-01-15:
https://denver.cbslocal.com/photo-galleries/2018/01/16/national-western-stock-show-3/
(image:
https://denver.cbslocal.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/15909806/2018/01/gettyimages-905430952_master.jpg?w=1024&h=0&crop=1)
Tomislav Todorovic, 2 September 2019
The flag was used again at the Black Lives Matter Plaza, Washington, DC
during the Juneteenth celebration on 2020-06-19. It was hoisted together with a
smaller Garvey Flag atop the same staff. The photo is available here:
https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/pan-african-flag-flies-from-black-lives-matter-plaza-news-photo/1221104924
Tomislav Todorovic, 18 November 2020