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I would encourage any of the overly comfortable users of this site to spend five minutes in the company of a Rastafarian. Not your weed dealer that’s wearing a

• 29athrowaway 3y ago
  The Snoop Lion documentary did not help much.
• throwaway1777 3y ago
  Liberation is generally not peaceful is it
  • local_crmdgeon 3y ago
    What does killing the gays have to do with liberation?
• nroets 3y ago
  Also ask them who the indigenous people of Southern Africa are. They will never acknowledge that it's the Khoisan and that the Bantu are colonizers. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Khoisan https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Khoisan
  • eesmith 3y ago
    As https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rastafari https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rastafari points out, there is much diversity among Rastafari, including "black supremacism" and "Other Rasta sects believe that an "African" identity is not inherently linked to black skin but rather is about whether an individual displays an African "attitude" or "spirit"." There are Koisan Rastifari. In https://journal.fi/suomenantropologi/article/download/60344/21201 https://journal.fi/suomenantropologi/article/download/60344/... you can see mention of separate Rastafarian groups: > At the time, he was the sole Khoisan Rastafari in this predominantly Xhosa neighborhood. ... King Yellow often conceptualized himself as culture breaker or a mediator occupying a third position between Khoisan and Xhosa ethnicities, which he clearly distinguishes as separate groups existing in the Rastafarian movement ... "You get a lot of racist wars here in the Rasta community also (...) me, that’s why I went to live in marcus Garvey to break that barrier... (King Yellow 2013) > ... In this crowd, my eye is caught by a group of young, barefoot, bearded men, who are wearing what appears to be sack cloth. I am told by my friend that they are ‘Sakman’, members of a local Khoisan Rastafarian sect, who surrender their life completely to devotion and supposedly live in isolation somewhere outside of the city. Or from https://kujenga-amani.ssrc.org/2017/08/29/khoisan-rastafarianism-a-path-to-peace-in-the-western-cape-south-africa/ https://kujenga-amani.ssrc.org/2017/08/29/khoisan-rastafaria... : > By fusing indigenousness within a universally established religious identity, the Khoisan Rastafarian movement encourages members of the Colored community to discover their roots and to perceive themselves as a part of a global community of Black people who have all experienced oppression through colonialism and/or slavery. As a result, Rastafari promotes peace in South Africa and a larger movement towards recognizing the indigenous KhoiSan people.
    • rasjani 3y ago
      Person who wrote that paper about Koisan rastafari interviewed me and few other locals for his doctoral dissertation ;)
      • eesmith 3y ago
        So what would a Koisan Rastafari say when posed your question?
    • deleted 3y ago
      [deleted]
  • OneDonOne 3y ago
    Suchh divisions are superficial to most Rastaman. As per Peter Tosh: https://genius.com/Peter-tosh-african-lyrics https://genius.com/Peter-tosh-african-lyrics
• oh_sigh 3y ago
  I've spent many hours with Ras Rody - he's not a weed dealer in a Bob Marley shirt - he runs a vegan food truck in Santa Fe. Super nice dude. The food is absolutely incredible. Probably the most I've ever "tasted the love" put into food in my life. I'm not even close to vegan but ate there 3x/week when I lived in Santa Fe. Is your point that really delicious food is an unwelcome influence in the Caribbean?
  • pbj1968 3y ago
    Someone you were handing money to was nice to you? Are you for real?
    • AndrewOMartin 3y ago
      This is an example of the "No True Rastafarian" logical fallacy.
    • oh_sigh 3y ago
      OP said "Spend 5 minutes in the company of a rastafarian", and I talked about my experience spending many hours in the company of one. Maybe OP should have made a better appeal if you didn't like my anecdote.
  • x3874 3y ago
    [flagged]
    • dopidopHN 3y ago
      > Btw one of the most popular dish of Ethopia is a sour uninspiring crepé variant (injera) with bony, oily chops (any wat). Absolute shite compared to an Hungarian or Czech goulash. Those are different dish. I like both. Goulash can be described as a bad soup, too.
    • oh_sigh 3y ago
      OP literally asked for anecdata, by suggesting anyone spend 5 minutes in the presence of any non-weed-dealing, non-bob-marley-esque rastafari
• jrflowers 3y ago
  Do you have contact info that I can use to make sure I’ve met a true Rastafarian? Since you are confident enough to guarantee my experience with any adherent to this religion, can you expand on the depth and breadth of your experiences with the many individuals that are part of it?
  • jrflowers 3y ago
    I wish the Religion Experts would share their knowledge here :(. I guess it’s just a religion with thousands of adherents across a very large diaspora, maybe vague implications that they’re all… less than peaceful(?) is so obviously true that a downvote is more conducive to curious conversation than adding any additional words.
• ratg13 3y ago
  I live part time in the Caribbean and don't relate to what you are saying at all. The rastas that I spend time with are among the most friendly people I've ever met.
  • boffinAudio 3y ago
    Likewise, I am yet to meet a true Rasta who I didn't get along with, famously.
• boffinAudio 3y ago
  No True Scotsman can be applied to any culture, as .. after all .. all culture is a lie that only persists in the re-telling. Anecdotally I have 5 peaceful Rastafarians in my life for every one of your militant variety, and they are wonderful people to be around.
• sersi 3y ago
  Can you elaborate? What exactly are the behaviors that cause them to be seen as an unwelcome influence? I'm genuinely asking because it's interesting, not to harp on you but because I'd like to know more.
  • pastacacioepepe 3y ago
    Read about murder music[0]. This song literally repeats "Burn the homosexuals"[1]. The contrast with the happy and festive vibe of the song is so weird. .0: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stop_Murder_Music https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stop_Murder_Music .1: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vo1VZZ_7nh4 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vo1VZZ_7nh4
    • lawgimenez 3y ago
      Same story with the influencial Bad Brains who people forgot that the band was a serial homophobe.
      • rasjani 3y ago
        There's no denying that some artists resort to these anticts but being anti-gay is cultural norm within caribbean due to heavy influence of conservative church - it is not limited to the rastafari movement only.
      • detourdog 3y ago
        I wasn't really a Bad Brains fan. One summer my friend ended up in charge of some the kids and their friends. I never noticed any if that energy. We never had any deep conversations but it was a comfortable environment. I have felt more threatened around southern baptists or born agains.
    • echelon_musk 3y ago
      Dancehall and reggae singers like Buju Banton and Capleton have however publicly renounced the homophobic messages in their earlier music. Jamaica has been known as the most homophobic country in the world, where homosexuality remains illegal, despite slowly changing attitudes.
• lynx23 3y ago
  I spent way more then 5 minutes with Rastafari. This does not enable me to guess what your unsubstantiated claim is hinting at. What I found rather weird is that many are still riding the slavery-victim-train, which was sort of weird for a european to witness first hand. I can imagine how this combined with the slave-trader-hunter-hero thing might feel a bit anti-peaceful, but I also understand the reasons for that attitude, histoically speaking.
  • x3874 3y ago
    [flagged]
    • lynx23 3y ago
      > Oh you can still observe this stance in the US these days That is why I wrote it is strange for an european to witness. I am aware we miss out on a lot of black-victim-culture over here. > You know, your personal or community economic failure has always been originating from the white man... /s Well, most people are not against free money falling from the sky. So while I get your snappy comment, I also feel like if someone was willing to pay, there is obviously still enough free money around, so no problem for me in particular.
      • TeMPOraL 3y ago
        [flagged]
      • cool_dude85 3y ago
        I'd be interested to know what European country you're from that does not have a history of victimizing black people.
        • machinawhite 3y ago
          You're talking about western Europe right?
• rasjani 3y ago
  While I do agree with you to the certain degree - I'd add a side note that the movement does not share a single dogma nor there's a body that could lay down one. Rastafari as a movement is splintered into smaller sects (or houses or mansions as they are references within the movement) - each one holding varying views of what ever topic at hand. And as you pointed out some of them are not very friendly - that's always the case when fundamentalism enters the picture. But that said, I would personally argue that statement that the "whole movement" or every "rasfafari" falls into your assumption is 100% not true. On comparison - If I'd point out that every christian in States is fundamental lunatic there would be people wanting to lynch me. And just to point out; this is purely anecdata on my own behalf. I've been in contact with various people / mansions for past 33 years and i am "officially" part one of the biggest / global houses but i dont really go under that banner anymore because of the fundamental views of some people within those circles make me sick. But its still not the whole movement.
  • imagineerschool 3y ago
    > If I'd point out that every christian in States is fundamental lunatic there would be people wanting to lynch me. Thus proving your point to be correct?
    • ffgjgf1 3y ago
      Except there wouldn’t and nobody would care
    • brazzy 3y ago
      Do you understand the difference between "every" and "some"?
    • horns4lyfe 3y ago
      If you don’t get the point at all, sure
• tokai 3y ago
  The different houses has different views. Bobo Ashanti are bigots and racists. Others are internationalist with a strong focus on the on the universal bond between all people. Its an extremely diverse group with very flat leadership. There are even rastas that claim to be atheist and rasta at the same time.
  • hdidvdksv 3y ago
    [flagged]
  • berkes 3y ago
    I lived with a Rastafarian in South Africa for a while (I was a white European 19yo). He thought me a lot about atheism and Greek philosophy. He showed me that men should live a good life, be kind, not for heavenly spite or reward, but because "being good is something you yourself want" (as told by the Greek cynics). He had an unofficial dog-shelter, because, while being atheist, he did believe in reincarnation (a common Rastafarian theme), and that you should be good to animals because they may very well be your grandmother. He therefore also was the only (other) vegetarian, that I knew of, in a capital city of a former South African Thuisland.
• virtualritz 3y ago
  To add to this: I could never understand how women calling themselves feminist could at the same time identify with a deeply patriarchal culture where "Gender inequality is rife"[1]. The article omits talking about what this culture stands for in that regard somehow completely. It talks about Rastafari men only. [1] https://academic.oup.com/book/595/chapter-abstract/135316411 https://academic.oup.com/book/595/chapter-abstract/135316411
  • tokai 3y ago
    A sympathetic interpretation would be that they identify with the conscious parts of the culture, and not the parts laid out by Aramaic reading old testament lovers. You know just like in rest of Christianity where you can find both feminist and chauvinist worshippers. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qDNVHYCzH3M https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qDNVHYCzH3M
• Gordonjcp 3y ago
  You could say the same about any other faith, including atheists.
• tokai 3y ago
  Posting again because I didn't catch this the first time. "They are seen as unwelcome influence in much of the Caribbean." This is absolutely not an okay argument against a religious community. It is very reminiscent of what antisemitics use as an argument for their hate.
  • BobbyJo 3y ago
    Isn't antisemitism more of an ethnic prejudice than a religious prejudice? I don't think people are antisemitic because they disagree with some tenet of Judaism. Generally, saying a religion, or any belief really, isn't culturally acceptable is perfectly fine in my mind. That would apply equally to Scientology, Rastafarianism, Judaism, Christianity, etc.
    • blululu 3y ago
      Antisemitism is intimately related to the question of who is Jewish, and there is no consensus on this question within the various communities involved. Some forms of antisemitism are explicitly racial but a lot of criticism falls along ethical lines.
    • tokai 3y ago
      Saying that a group is "seen as unwelcome influence" as an argument against said group is not a disagreement of some tenet of the groups faith.
      • BobbyJo 3y ago
        Sure, but it's not not a disagreement of some tenet either. Is the ethnic makeup of the Caribbean such that we should not believe so? Are Rastafarians ethnically coherent enough that it could be interpreted as such a prejudice?
  • emptyfile 3y ago
    [dead]
• mattbrewsbytes 3y ago
  Can you explain more? I just watched a Netflix doc on Marley (thinking they'd have more music than they did) and what I understood from that was that Rasta was really unpolitical and pushing unity/peace. At least from Marley's perspective, it sounded like various groups/gangs used him and the movement.
  • giraffe_lady 3y ago
    It's still an abrahamic religion and tends toward the same sexism and homophobia as its cousins. Look into the specific practices and beliefs of the different mansions (denominations), because they vary a lot. Some are quite morally rigid. A lot of individual rastas are personally apolitical like any other religion. But overall the religion certainly has its own outward politics, historically closely linked to the black liberation struggle. There are active and mainstream currents of black nationalism & separatism in the religion. Which, whatever you think of their merits, are not particularly chill worldviews.
    • mattbrewsbytes 3y ago
      > chill worldviews I haven't validated this thought but here goes: dive deep into any religion and I bet none of them have chill worldviews (i.e. accepting of all, etc.). In my mind the only candidate might be buddhism but I haven't dove into that hardly to see what lurks
      • giraffe_lady 3y ago
        Pretty much agreed. A calm unworried soul is not particularly interested in the questions religion is positioned to answer. A contradiction pretty directly addressed by a strand of eastern christian mysticism (and others). Where many historical saints were illiterate and essentially ignorant of the fundamentals of their own religion, and this is considered good and correct: they naturally follow god's will and so have no need to learn about it any other way. And then you get into theory vs practice I guess without a useful distinction either way. The pali canon might be chill, but devout buddhists have still done genocide. The archetypal tolstoyan pious serf might be chill but the russian orthodox church certainly never has been.