FAQ

What is the House of Sellassie Vision for the African Diaspora?

H.I.M. Haile Sellassie I taught a universallist vision for all mankind. He saw himself as a citizen of the world, not as a narrowly defined ethnic representative of any one geographic region or cultural/linguistic entity. The core thought of Rastafarianism still reflects this universalist vision, "one love, one world."

The House of Sellassie remains true to this universalist vision of its Founder, H.I.M. Haile Sellaist vision for all mankind. He saw himself as a citizen of the world, not as a narrowly defined ethnic representative of any one geographic region or cultural/linguistic entity. The core thought of Rastafarianism still reflects this universalist vision, "one love, one world."

The House of Sellassie remains true to this universalist vision of its Founder, H.I.M. Haile Sellassie I. As an inevitable consequence of this firm philosophical position, the House of Sellassie sees all diasporas as the global reflection of "la condition humaine" at the beginning of the Third Millennium. Upon close scrutiny, it will be found that all diasporas confront identical challenges and promises. Questions of language and culture maintenance, the constraints of assimilation to dominant value systems, the empowerment of the linguistically and culturally less assimilated, the specific contributions of disadvantaged minorities to the betterment of all mankind, all share identical sociological contours in every diaspora.

The archetypical paradigm of all Third Millennium information-age society is to be found in the historical example of the more than two thousand year old Jewish diaspora. The success story of the social integrity of the Jewish people throughout the last two thousand years conveys inspirational lessons for every diaspora. Just as the Jews have succeeded against all odds in returning to their ancestral homeland, while yet retaining intact the traditional institutions of their historical diaspora, so also can the model be repetitive in every other diaspora, including the African diaspora. Yet, in a very real sense, every human being will necessarily continue living in varying degrees of diaspora, i.e. in circumstances more or less favorable for the flourishing of his/her own cultural specificity. There is no "African culture;" there are, rather, worlds of African cultures. A Zulu, for example, living among the Hausa people will find himself deeply immersed in the identical societal characteristics of every other diaspora. Indeed, Ethiopia, with our 70 languages is a nation of diasporas.

Nor may it be assumed that "African culture" equates with "Black culture," for the fair-haired, blue-eyed Algerian Berber descendants of the Visigoths in North Africa are indeed African in every true sense of the word, just as are the yellow-skinned Bushmen of South Africa and Namibia. On the other hand, the black, French-speaking New Caledonians are Melanesians and have never had any historical relationship with the African Continent whatsoever. Physical pigmentation is simply no indice of inclusion or exclusion from the African cultures. H.I.M. Haile Sellassie I saw and understood this and consistently refused to let anyone label him as other than a representative of all humanity.

With this universalist vision as our ideal, what the House of Sellassie cannot condone is the artificial structuring and re-inforcement of any kind of obscurantist "ghetto mentality," superimposed upon our brothers and sisters of color by self-serving demagogues, Black fascists and "Afrikan" chauvinists.

The vision of the House of Sellassie for the African diaspora centers upon clearing away the rubble and debris of an inherited post-slavery ghetto mentality, so that all our brothers and sisters of African heritage may fairly and equally take their rightful place among our fellow humankind. Was this not also the vision of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.?

As a voice of moral encouragement and spiritual guidance in the African diaspora, the House of Sellassie will forthrightly speak out against the injustices of man against man, wherever it is found, remaining utterly indifferent to race, religion, or ethnic affiliation.

Our precedent for this dynastic policy ultimately flows from our sacred Ethiopian Orthodox Tawahedo traditions, which understand the concept of "righteousness," not as "the practice of piety," but as "the practice of stringently equitable ethical conduct." Our divine sanction for this policy is our Ge'ez Version of the Holy Bible: "Blessed are they that keep justice and righteousness at all times" (Psalm 106: 3.) With God's blessings we shall hold steadfastly to this ethical commitment, "until the Spirit be poured upon us from on high, and the wilderness be a fruitful field, and the fruitful field be counted as a forest. And the work of righteousness shall be peace, and the effect of righteousness, quietness and assurance for ever" (Isaiah 32: 15-17.)

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