Editing Rastafari (section)

== History ==

{{Main|History of Rastafari}}

Rastafari developed out of the legacy of the Atlantic slave trade, in which over ten million enslaved Africans were transported to the Americas between the 16th and 19th centuries.{{sfn|Chevannes|1994|p=2}} Under 700,000 of these slaves were settled in the British [[colony of Jamaica]].{{sfn|Chevannes|1994|p=2}} The British government [[Slavery Abolition Act 1833|abolished slavery]] in the Caribbean island in 1834,{{sfnm|1a1=Clarke|1y=1986|1p=24|2a1=Chevannes|2y=1994|2p=3}} although racial prejudice remained prevalent across Jamaican society.{{sfn|Chevannes|1994|p=3}}

=== Ethiopianism, Back to Africa, and Marcus Garvey ===
[[File:Marcus Garvey (1922).jpg|thumb|upright|Marcus Garvey, a prominent black nationalist theorist who heavily influenced Rastafari and is regarded as a prophet by many Rastas]]

Rastafari owed much to intellectual frameworks arising in the 19th and early 20th centuries.{{sfn|Francis|2013|p=52}} One key influence on Rastafari was Christian Revivalism,{{sfn|Chevannes|1994|p=120}} with the [[Third Great Awakening|Great Revival of 1860–61]] drawing many Afro-Jamaicans to join churches.{{sfnm|1a1=Clarke|1y=1986|1p=25|2a1=Barrett|2y=1997|2p=21}} Increasing numbers of [[Pentecostalism|Pentecostal]] missionaries from the United States arrived in Jamaica during the early 20th century, climaxing in the 1920s.{{sfnm|1a1=Clarke|1y=1986|1p=26|2a1=Barrett|2y=1997|2p=25}}

Further contributing significantly to Rastafari's development were [[Ethiopian movement|Ethiopianism]] and the [[Back to Africa]] ethos, both traditions with 18th-century roots.{{sfn|Clarke|1986|pp=27–28}} In the 19th century, there were growing calls for the African diaspora located in Western Europe and the Americas to be resettled in Africa,{{sfn|Clarke|1986|pp=27–28}} with some of this diaspora establishing colonies in Sierra Leone and Liberia.{{sfn|Clarke|1986|pp=27–28}} Based in Liberia, the black Christian preacher [[Edward Wilmot Blyden]] began promoting African pride and the preservation of African tradition, customs, and institutions.{{sfnm|1a1=Clarke|1y=1986|1pp=29–34|2a1=Barrett|2y=1997|2pp=75–76|3a1=Francis|3y=2013|3pp=54–56}} Also spreading throughout Africa was Ethiopianism, a movement that accorded special status to the east African nation of Ethiopia because it was mentioned in various Biblical passages.{{sfnm|1a1=Clarke|1y=1986|1p=34|2a1=Chawane|2y=2014|2p=221}} For adherents of Ethiopianism, "Ethiopia" was regarded as a [[Synecdoche|synonym]] of Africa as a whole.{{sfn|Clarke|1986|p=34}}

Of significant influence on Rastafari was the Jamaican activist Marcus Garvey, who spent much of his adult life in the US and Britain. Garvey supported the idea of global [[Black separatism|racial separatism]] and called for part of the African diaspora to relocate to Africa.{{sfn|Clarke|1986|pp=41–42}} His ideas faced opposition from civil rights activists like [[W. E. B. Du Bois]] who supported racial integration,{{sfn|Clarke|1986|p=43}} and as a mass movement, [[Garveyism]] declined in the [[Great Depression]] of the 1930s.{{sfn|Clarke|1986|p=43}} A rumour later spread that in 1916, Garvey had called on his supporters to "look to Africa" for the crowning of a black king; this quote was never verified.{{sfnm|1a1=Cashmore|1y=1983|1p=22|2a1=Soumahoro|2y=2007|2pp=38–39}} However, in August 1930, Garvey's play, ''Coronation of an African King'', was performed in Kingston. Its plot revolved around the crowning of the fictional Prince Cudjoe of Sudan, although it anticipated the crowning of Haile Selassie later that year.{{sfn|Grant|2008|p=426}} Rastas hold Garvey in great esteem,{{sfn|Barnett|2005|p=77}} with many regarding him as a prophet.{{sfnm|1a1=Clarke|1y=1986|1p=35|2a1=Edmonds|2y=2012|2p=7|3a1=Semaj|3y=2013|3p=99|4a1=Chawane|4y=2014|4p=221}} Garvey knew of Rastafari, but took a largely negative view of the religion;{{sfn|Chevannes|1994|p=109}} he also became a critic of Haile Selassie,{{sfnm|1a1=Cashmore|1y=1983|1p=22|2a1=Grant|2y=2008|2pp=440–441}} calling him "a great coward" who rules a "country where black men are chained and flogged".{{sfn|Cashmore|1983|p=22}}

=== Haile Selassie and the early Rastas: 1930–1949 ===

Haile Selassie was crowned Emperor of Ethiopia in 1930, becoming the first sovereign monarch [[Coronations in Africa|crowned in]] [[Sub-Saharan Africa]] since 1891 and first Christian one since 1889. A number of Jamaica's Christian clergymen claimed that Selassie's coronation was evidence that he was the black messiah that they believed was prophesied in the Book of Revelation,{{efn|{{Bibleverse|Revelation|5:2–3|KJV}}; {{Bibleverse|Revelation|19:16|KJV}}}} the Book of Daniel,{{efn|{{Bibleverse|Daniel|7:3|KJV}}}} and Psalms.{{efn|{{Bibleverse|Psalms|68:31|KJV}}}}{{sfnm|1a1=Clarke|1y=1986|1p=46|2a1=Lewis|2y=1993|2pp=1–2|3a1=Loadenthal|3y=2013|3p=10}} Over the following years, several street preachers—most notably Leonard Howell, [[Archibald Dunkley]], [[Robert Hinds]], and [[Joseph Hibbert]]—began claiming that Haile Selassie was the returned Jesus.{{sfnm|1a1=Lewis|1y=1993|1p=2|2a1=Barrett|2y=1997|2p=81|3a1=Edmonds|3y=2012|3p=9}} They first did so in Kingston, and soon the message spread throughout 1930s Jamaica,{{sfnm|1a1=Clarke|1y=1986|1p=46|2a1=Lewis|2y=1993|2p=2}} especially among poor communities who were hit particularly hard by the Great Depression.{{sfn|Fernández Olmos|Paravisini-Gebert|2011|p=187}} Clarke stated that "to all intents and purposes this was the beginning" of the Rastafari movement.{{sfn|Clarke|1986|p=46}}

[[File:Addis Ababa-8e00855u.jpg|thumb|right|Emperor Haile Selassie in 1942, a year after he re-took control of Ethiopia]]

Howell was the early movement's "leading figure".{{sfn|Barrett|1997|p=82}} He preached that black Africans were superior to white Europeans and that Afro-Jamaicans should owe their allegiance to Haile Selassie rather than to King [[George V]]. The island's colonial authorities arrested him and charged him with sedition in 1934, resulting in a two-year imprisonment.{{sfnm|1a1=Clarke|1y=1986|1p=46|2a1=Barrett|2y=1997|2pp=85–86|3a1=Fernández Olmos|3a2=Paravisini-Gebert|3y=2011|3p=188|4a1=Edmonds|4y=2012|4pp=11, 13}} Following his release, Howell established the [[Ethiopian Salvation Society]] and in 1939 formed a Rasta community, known as Pinnacle, in [[Saint Catherine Parish]].{{sfnm|1a1=Cashmore|1y=1983|1p=25|2a1=Clarke|2y=1986|2p=46|3a1=Barrett|3y=1997|3p=86|4a1=Edmonds|4y=2012|4pp=13–14}} Jamaica's police feared that Howell was plotting an armed rebellion and raided Pinnacle repeatedly. Pinnacle ultimately closed in 1954 and Howell was committed to a mental hospital.{{sfnm|1a1=Cashmore|1y=1983|1p=26|2a1=Barrett|2y=1997|2p=87|3a1=Edmonds|3y=2012|3pp=14–15}}

In 1936, Italy [[Second Italo-Ethiopian War|invaded and occupied Ethiopia]], and Haile Selassie went into exile. The invasion brought international condemnation and led to growing sympathy for the Ethiopian cause.{{sfn|Clarke|1986|p=47}} In 1937, Selassie created the [[Ethiopian World Federation]], which established a branch in Jamaica later that decade.{{sfnm|1a1=Cashmore|1y=1983|1p=27|2a1=Clarke|2y=1986|2p=47|3a1=Barrett|3y=1997|3p=89|4a1=Bonacci|4y=2013|4pp=74, 78}} In 1941, [[Allies of World War II|Allied]] forces [[East African campaign (World War II)|drove the Italians out of Ethiopia]] and Selassie returned to reclaim his throne. Many Rastas interpreted this as the fulfilment of a prophecy made in the Book of Revelation.{{efn|{{Bibleverse|Revelation|19:11–19|KJV}}}}{{sfn|Clarke|1986|p=47}}

=== Growing visibility: 1950–1969 ===

Rastafari's main appeal was among Jamaica's lower classes.{{sfn|Clarke|1986|p=47}} For its first thirty years, Rastafari was in a conflictual relationship with the Jamaican authorities.{{sfn|Edmonds|2012|p=10}} Jamaica's Rastas expressed contempt for many aspects of the island's society, viewing the government, police, bureaucracy, professional classes, and established churches as instruments of Babylon.{{sfn|Clarke|1986|p=50}} Relations between practitioners and the police were strained, with Rastas often being arrested for cannabis possession.{{sfnm|1a1=Clarke|1y=1986|1p=49|2a1=Barrett|2y=1997|2p=93}} During the 1950s the movement grew rapidly in Jamaica and also spread to other Caribbean islands, the United States, and the United Kingdom.{{sfn|Clarke|1986|p=47}}

In the 1940s and 1950s, a more militant brand of Rastafari emerged.{{sfn|Edmonds|2012|p=15}} The vanguard of this was the [[House of Youth Black Faith]], a group largely based in [[West Kingston, Jamaica|West Kingston]].{{sfn|Edmonds|2012|p=16}} Backlash against the Rastas grew after a practitioner allegedly killed a woman in 1957.{{sfn|Clarke|1986|p=50}} In March 1958, the first Rastafarian Universal Convention was held in [[Back-o-Wall]], Kingston.{{sfnm|1a1=Clarke|1y=1986|1p=50|2a1=Barrett|2y=1997|2p=92}} Following the event, militant Rastas unsuccessfully tried to capture the city in the name of Haile Selassie.{{sfnm|1a1=Cashmore|1y=1983|1p=28|2a1=Clarke|2y=1986|2p=50|3a1=Barrett|3y=1997|3p=93}} Later that year they tried again in [[Spanish Town]].{{sfn|Clarke|1986|p=50}} The increasing militancy of some Rastas resulted in growing alarm;{{sfn|Clarke|1986|p=50}} according to Cashmore, the Rastas became "folk devils" in Jamaican society.{{sfn|Cashmore|1983|p=28}}

In 1959, the self-declared prophet and founder of the [[African Reform Church]], [[Claudius Henry]], sold thousands of tickets to Afro-Jamaicans, including many Rastas, for passage on a ship that he claimed would take them to Africa. The ship never arrived and Henry was charged with fraud. In 1960 he was sentenced to six years imprisonment for conspiring to overthrow the government.{{sfnm|1a1=Cashmore|1y=1983|1pp=28–29|2a1=Clarke|2y=1986|2p=50|3a1=Barrett|3y=1997|3pp=95–98|4a1=Edmonds|4y=2012|4p=19}} Henry's son was accused of being part of a paramilitary cell and executed, confirming public fears about Rasta violence.{{sfnm|1a1=Cashmore|1y=1983|1pp=29–30|2a1=Barrett|2y=1997|2pp=98–99|3a1=Edmonds|3y=2012|3pp=19–20}} One of the most prominent clashes between Rastas and law enforcement was the [[Coral Gardens incident]] of 1963, in which an initial skirmish between police and Rastas resulted in several deaths and led to a larger roundup of practitioners.{{sfn|Edmonds|2012|p=22}} Clamping down on the Rasta movement, in 1964 the island's government implemented tougher laws surrounding cannabis use.{{sfn|King|2002|p=79}}

At the invitation of its government, [[Grounation Day|Haile Selassie visited Jamaica for the first time on 21 April 1966]], with thousands of Rastas assembled to meet him at the airport.{{sfnm|1a1=Clarke|1y=1986|1p=51|2a1=Barrett|2y=1997|2pp=158–160|3a1=King|3y=2002|3pp=82–83|4a1=Edmonds|4y=2012|4p=24}} Over the course of the 1960s, Jamaica's Rasta community underwent a process of [[Charismatic authority#Routinizing charisma|routinisation]],{{sfn|Barrett|1997|p=146}} with the late 1960s witnessing the launch of the first official Rastafarian newspaper, the [[Rastafarian Movement Association]]'s ''Rasta Voice''.{{sfn|King|2002|p=52}} The decade also saw Rastafari develop in increasingly complex ways,{{sfn|Clarke|1986|p=51}} as it did when some Rastas began to reinterpret the idea that salvation required a physical return to Africa, instead interpreting salvation as coming through a process of mental decolonisation that embraced African approaches to life.{{sfn|Clarke|1986|p=51}}

Whereas its membership had previously derived predominantly from poorer sectors of society, in the 1960s Rastafari began attracting support from more privileged groups like students and professional musicians.{{sfnm|1a1=Clarke|1y=1986|1p=51|2a1=Edmonds|2y=2012|2p=25}} The foremost group emphasising this approach was the Twelve Tribes of Israel, whose members came to be known as "Uptown Rastas".{{sfn|Edmonds|2012|p=25}} Many Rastas came under the influence of the Guyanese black nationalist academic [[Walter Rodney]], who lectured to their community in 1968 before publishing his thoughts as the pamphlet ''Groundings''.{{sfnm|1a1=Clarke|1y=1986|1p=52|2a1=Bedasse|2y=2013|2pp=297–298|3a1=Edmonds|3y=2012|3p=26}} Like Rodney, many Jamaican Rastas were influenced by the U.S.-based [[Black Power]] movement,{{sfnm|1a1=Clarke|1y=1986|1p=54|2a1=Edmonds|2y=2012|2pp=25–26}} and after that movement declined, Rastafari filled the vacuum it left for many black youth.{{sfn|Clarke|1986|p=55}}

=== International spread and decline: 1970–present ===

In the mid-1970s, reggae's international popularity exploded.{{sfn|King|2002|p=96}} The most successful reggae artist, [[Bob Marley]], played a major role in introducing Rastafari themes to audiences across the world.{{sfn|Cashmore|1983|p=108}} Reggae's popularity led to a growth in "pseudo-Rastafarians", individuals who listened to reggae and wore Rasta clothing but did not share its belief system.{{sfn|King|2002|pp=100, 102}} Many Rastas were angered by this, believing it commercialised their religion.{{sfn|King|2002|p=102}}

[[File:Bob-Marley-in-Concert Zurich 05-30-80.jpg|thumb|left|Reggae musician Bob Marley did much to raise international awareness of the Rastafari movement in the 1970s.]]

Through reggae, Rasta musicians became increasingly important in Jamaica's political life during the 1970s.{{sfn|Clarke|1986|p=53}} To bolster his popularity with the electorate, Jamaican Prime Minister [[Michael Manley]] employed Rasta imagery and courted support from Marley and other reggae musicians.{{sfnm|1a1=Clarke|1y=1986|1p=52|2a1=Lewis|2y=1993|2p=12|3a1=Lewis|3y=1994|3pp=290–291|4a1=King|4y=2002|4pp=105, 108–111}} Manley described Rastas as a "beautiful and remarkable people"{{sfn|Barrett|1997|p=ix}} and carried a cane which he claimed was a gift from Haile Selassie.{{sfnm|1a1=Barrett|1y=1997|1p=220|2a1=King|2y=1998|2p=41|3a1=King|3y=2002|3pp=91–92|4a1=Edmonds|4y=2012|4p=27}} Following Manley's example, Jamaican political parties increasingly employed Rasta language, symbols, and reggae references in their campaigns,{{sfnm|1a1=Lewis|1y=1994|1p=12|2a1=Lewis|2y=1994|2p=291|3a1=Edmonds|3y=2012|3p=27}} while Rasta symbols became increasingly mainstream in Jamaican society.{{sfn|King|2002|p=106}} This helped to confer greater legitimacy on Rastafari,{{sfn|Edmonds|2012|p=27}} with reggae and Rasta imagery being increasingly presented as a core part of Jamaica's [[cultural heritage]] for the growing tourist industry.{{sfn|King|2002|pp=121–122}} In the 1980s, a Rasta, [[Barbara Makeda Blake Hannah]], became a senator in the Jamaican Parliament.{{sfn|Semaj|2013|p=98}}

Enthusiasm for Rastafari was likely dampened by the death of Haile Selassie in 1975 and that of Marley in 1981.{{sfn|Edmonds|2012|p=28}} During the 1980s, the number of Rastas in Jamaica declined,{{sfn|King|2002|p=120}} with Pentecostal and other [[Charismatic Christianity|Charismatic Christian]] groups proving more successful at attracting young recruits.{{sfn|Edmonds|2012|p=29}} Several prominent Rastas converted to Christianity,{{sfn|Edmonds|2012|p=29}} and two of those who did so—[[Judy Mowatt]] and [[Tommy Cowan]]—maintained that Marley had converted to Christianity, in the form of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church, during his final days.{{sfn|Edmonds|2012|pp=29–30}} The significance of Rastafari messages in reggae also declined with the growing popularity of [[dancehall]], a Jamaican musical genre that typically foregrounded lyrical themes of hyper-masculinity, violence, and sexual activity rather than religious symbolism.{{sfn|Edmonds|2012|p=30}}

The mid-1990s saw a revival of Rastafari-focused reggae associated with musicians like [[Anthony B]], [[Buju Banton]], [[Luciano (singer)|Luciano]], [[Sizzla]], and [[Capleton]].{{sfn|Edmonds|2012|p=30}} From the 1990s, Jamaica also witnessed the growth of organised political activity within the Rasta community, seen for instance through campaigns for the legalisation of cannabis and the creation of political parties like the [[Jamaican Alliance Movement]] and the [[Imperial Ethiopian World Federation Incorporated Political Party]], none of which attained more than minimal electoral support.{{sfn|Edmonds|2012|pp=30–31}} In 1995, the Rastafari Centralization Organization was established in Jamaica as an attempt to organise the Rastafari community.{{sfn|Barnett|2002|p=56}}