Imari Obadele (born Richard Bullock Henry) (May 2, 1930 – January 18, 2010)[1] was a Black nationalist, advocate for reparations, and president of the Republic of New Afrika.
Imari Obadele | |
|---|---|
| Born | Richard Bullock Henry May 2, 1930 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S. |
| Died | January 18, 2010 (aged 79) |
| Education | PhD, Temple University |
| Occupation(s) | Black nationalist, professor |
| Employer | Prairie View A&M University |
| Known for | Malcolm X Society Republic of New Afrika National Coalition of Blacks for Reparations in America |
| Title | President, Republic of New Afrika (1971–1991) |
| Family | (stepson) Ivory A. Toldson |
Early life
editRichard Henry was born in Philadelphia, and as a young man founded a civil rights organization there with his brother Milton. The two later moved to Detroit.
After the murder of Malcolm X, they helped form the Malcolm X Society and, dissatisfied by the progress achieved by nonviolent approaches to civil rights movement, came to embrace Black separatism.
Imari Obadele acknowledged he was a graduate of Yale University during the tv program, Firing Line, hosted by William F. Buckley, in episode 126, dated, November 18, 1968.
Republic of New Afrika
editRichard and Milton adopted the African names Imari and Gaidi Obadele in 1968. With others, founded the Republic of New Afrika.[2]: 276 At the meeting founding the group, they formed a "government in exile". Obadele was designated the information minister, and soon published a pamphlet "War in America".[3] The RNA's declared territory was Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, and South Carolina.[2]: 276
The Republic of New Afrika also formed a paramilitary unit: the Black Legion. In 1969, the unit was involved in a gun battle in Detroit that killed a police officer.
Imari split from his brother, who came to reject militancy, in 1970, and was also elected president of the Republic of New Afrika. Obadele and the group moved its headquarters to a house in Jackson, Mississippi, despite failing to purchase an 18-acre (73,000 m2) plot.
Arrest and prison
editObadele and ten others (the "RNA 11") were arrested and charged in the wake of a joint police / FBI raid on the house in 1971. The raid culminated in a gunfight that killed an officer. It was later determined that Obadele was not at the scene, and murder charges against him were dropped.[4]
In 1973, he was convicted of conspiracy to assault a federal agent[5] and sentenced to twelve years in prison (of which he served five). Amnesty International described him as a political prisoner, and the group claimed that it had been targeted by the FBI because of its political views.[6] FBI documentation that was later released confirmed that the agency was following the group. Internal FBI memos suggested that Obadele "be kept off the streets" and that he was one of the country's "most violence-prone Black extremists".
Later life
editAfter prison, Obadele went on to earn a PhD in political science from Temple University. He became a professor at Prairie View A&M University.
In 1987, Obadele and Chokwe Lumumba[7] formed the National Coalition of Blacks for Reparations in America (N'COBRA), an organization dedicated to seeking financial compensation for the descendants of former slaves in the United States.[1]
Personal life
editHis stepson is academic and author Ivory A. Toldson.
References
edit- ^ a b Martin, Douglas (February 5, 2010). "Imari Obadele, Who Fought for Reparations, Dies at 79". The New York Times. Retrieved February 7, 2010.
- ^ a b Li, Hongshan (2024). Fighting on the Cultural Front: U.S.-China Relations in the Cold War. New York, NY: Columbia University Press. doi:10.7312/li--20704. ISBN 9780231207058. JSTOR 10.7312/li--20704.
- ^ Obadele, Imari Abubakari (1968). War in America: the Malcolm X doctrine. Malcolm X Society. p. 68.
- ^ Donna Ladd (March 5, 2014). "Jackson Tragedy: The RNA, Revisited". Jackson Free Press. Retrieved October 24, 2018.
- ^ Obadele, Imari (October 1978). "Open Letter to U.S. President Jimmy Carter from RNA President Imari Abubakari Obadele, I". The Black Scholar. 10 (2): 53–67. doi:10.1080/00064246.1978.11412683. JSTOR 41163666.
- ^ "Amnesty International Annual Report 1979" (PDF). Amnesty International. 1979. Archived from the original on October 25, 2022.
- ^ Winbush, Raymond (2010). Should America Pay?: Slavery and the Raging Debate on Reparations. New York, NY: HarperCollins.