Harvey was raised in East Orange, New Jersey, Early in his childhood, Harvey was mentored about his Black race, African values, and African-American legacy by his father, a cook for Marcus Garvey and an activist in the Pan-African Movement. Marcus Garvey had was founder of the Universal Negro Improvement Association and African Communities League. Harvey accepted the Garveyite challenge of becoming an advocate for African-American empowerment and Pan-African solidarity. He made a pledge to his father that when he grew up he would help his African-American brothers and sisters discover and live their true African heritage. Harvey believed in forging ties between Africans across the world who had been separated by the African diaspora and the Atlantic slave trade. Harvey and other Garveyites championed this ideology long before the popularization of such concepts the civil rights movement of the 1960’s. He later graduated from East Orange High School in 1957 and enlisted in the United States Air Force where he served with the Strategic Air Command for four years before being honorably discharged in 1961. He went on to study at Seton Hall University, where his major was political science. After graduating college, Harvey attended The United Nations language school in New York where he learned Swahili, Mandarin Chinese, Arabic, and Zulu.
Activism and diplomacy
Harvey was responsible for the founding and functioning of several organizations including the Black Community Development Organization, a grassroots community organization helping to instill Afrocentric values in African-American youth in various communities within Essex County, and Harvey & Associates, an international trade and investment consulting firm focused on exploring business opportunities in emerging African and Caribbean market economies. He also established and served as CEO of "His Majesty Traders", a business entity, as well as started and became Chairman of Human Bridges, Inc., a nonprofit charity. In 1965, Harvey converted from Christianity to Islam by joining The Nation of Islam, where he became a strong advocate for the holidayKwanzaa. Between 1970-1973, Harvey operated as a Non-Governmental Organization Representative to the United Nations for the Congress of African People. Harvey continued his international work through the Newark mayor's office as a Special Aide in the Office of Hon. Kenneth A. Gibson, the first black Mayor of Newark, for whom he handled international relations and protocol. From 1973 -1977, Harvey served as the of Drug & Alcohol Control for the City of East Orange, New Jersey under the leadership of Mayor William S. Hart. He was then assigned as Mayoral Liaison to the UN where he worked to expand and strengthen trade between developing nations and Newark, New Jersey. Harvey worked as Mayoral Liaison to the Newark-Rutgers University Small Business Development Center in 1978-1979, and, in 1978, Harvey served as the President of the Newark United Nations Association. Harvey spent many years partnering with Harlem, NY. In 1982, Harvey was appointed Executive Director of the HTWTI, Harlem Third World Trade Institute, as well international trade and investment promotion agency HUDC, The Harlem Urban Development Corporation in New York City. The Institute is responsible for the hosting of, and partnership with, countless distinguished government officials and business leaders. In 1983, the United Nations African and Caribbean Diplomatic Corps honored Harvey at a Testimonial Dinner for his twenty years of distinguished service and commitment to African and African-American causes. In 1984, Harvey was elected to the Board of Directors of the New York City Partnership, Inc., “a coalition of business and civic leaders dedicated to improving the quality of life in New York City.” Harvey worked closely with several foreign dignitaries. He was named the North American Representative and Spokesman for Cheikh Moutada M’Backe, spiritual leader of the Mourid Islamic Community headquartered in Touba, Senegal. In 1997, Harvey was appointed as Special Presidential Envoy of the Government of Liberia by President of the Republic of Liberia, H.E. Charles G. Taylor. Harvey served as the President of MICA, the Mourid Islamic Community in America. A resident of Essex County, Harvey was appointed Director of OCDAA, the Office of Cultural Diversity and Affirmative Action, in 2003. Through his post, he served as a member of the Essex County Disparity Study Commission and the Essex County Juvenile Justice Disparities Working Group. In 2004, Harvey was appointed as Executive Director of the EDC, the Essex County Economic Development Corporation and Essex County Office of Affirmative Action. On April 26, 2016, the NAACP Chapter of the Oranges and Maplewood awarded Harvey its Presidential Award. Harvey died on December 28, 2016 at the age of 76.
