Makandal Akhenation Daaga (born Geddes Granger; 13 August 1935 – 8 August 2016) was a

Trinidad and Tobago Trinidad and Tobago, officially the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, is the southernmost island country in the Caribbean, comprising the main islands of Trinidad and Tobago, along with several List of islands of Trinidad and Tobago, smaller i ...

political

activist Activism consists of efforts to promote, impede, direct or intervene in social, political, economic or environmental reform with the desire to make changes in society toward a perceived common good. Forms of activism range from mandate build ...

and former revolutionary. He was the leader of the 1970 Black Power Revolution. During the unrest he was arrested and charged. He rallied against inequalities towards black citizens in Trinidad. In February 1969, Granger founded the NJAC

National Joint Action Committee The National Joint Action Committee (NJAC) is a political party in Trinidad and Tobago. History The party was established in February 1969 by Makandal Daaga (then known as Geddes Granger), who was dissatisfied with the fact that most businesse ...

. In 2013 Daaga was awarded the

Order of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago The Order of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago (ORTT) is the highest honour of Trinidad and Tobago. Established in 2008, it replaced the Trinity Cross as the decoration for distinguished and outstanding service to the country. Recipients Ref ...

(ORTT)."Order of the Republic for Daaga, Deosaran, CJ"
''Trinidad and Tobago Newsday'', 29 August 2013. Daaga died on 8 August 2016.

Early life and education

Geddes Granger was born in

Laventille Laventille is a suburb of Port of Spain in Trinidad and Tobago. It is administered by the San Juan–Laventille Regional Corporation. Etymology The name ''Laventille'' hearkens back to colonial times, especially when the French dominated the cu ...

, Trinidad and Tobago. His father, Philip, was a barber and

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

veteran. Granger attended Belmont Intermediate School, and St. Mary's College before entering the

University of the West Indies The University of the West Indies (UWI), originally University College of the West Indies, is a public university system established to serve the higher education needs of the residents of 18 English-speaking countries and territories in t ...

in St. Augustine in 1967 where he was elected president of the Guild of Students. He took the name "Daaga" from one of the African leaders of the St. Joseph Mutiny against the

British Army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...

in 1837.

NJAC and the February Revolution

In 1969, a group of West Indian students occupied the computer centre at Sir George Williams University in Montreal. Ten Trinidadian students were among those charged with arson, among other actions. Partly in response to these events in Canada, Granger founded the National Joint Action Committee together with Dave Darbeau (later known as Kafra Kambon), Carl Blackwood, Aiyegoro Ome, Kelshall Bodie and Russel Andalucio. In late 1969, protests organised by NJAC successfully prevented a planned visit by the Canadian Governor-General

Roland Michener Daniel Roland Michener (April 19, 1900 – August 6, 1991) was a Canadian lawyer, politician, and diplomat who served as the 20th governor general of Canada from 1967 to 1974. Michener was born and educated in Alberta. In 1917 he served briefl ...

to the St. Augustine campus of the University of the West Indies. A demonstration was organised by NJAC and other groups on 26 February 1970 in

Port of Spain Port of Spain ( ; Trinidadian and Tobagonian English, Trinidadian English: ''Port ah Spain'' ) is the capital and chief port of Trinidad and Tobago. With a municipal population of 49,867 (2017), an urban population of 81,142 and a transient dail ...

to mark the first anniversary of the Sir George Williams affair. In response to this, nine of the leaders of NJAC were arrested, including Granger. Their release on March 4 was marked with demonstrations by thousands of supporters. The following day, a peaceful protest in solidarity with the NJAC leaders was dispersed by the police, triggering violent protests and the attempted fire bombing of the home of a government minister. Protests continued through March and intensified in April after Basil Davis, an NJAC member, was killed by the police on 6 April. Davis's funeral on 9 April drew 30,000 mourners. On 13 April, A. N. R. Robinson, a government minister and member of Parliament, resigned from the ruling

People's National Movement The People's National Movement (PNM) is the longest-serving and oldest active Politics of Trinidad and Tobago, political party in Trinidad and Tobago. The party has dominated national and local politics for much of Trinidad and Tobago's hist ...

in protest. On 21 April, the Prime Minister, Eric Williams, declared a state of emergency and arrested Granger and 14 other leaders of the Black Power movement.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Daaga, Makandal 1935 births 2016 deaths National Joint Action Committee politicians Recipients of the Order of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago Trinidad and Tobago activists University of the West Indies alumni