Rasta and Race

There are Rastas of all colors, backgrounds and races. Although the Rasta is rooted in its Afrikanness, Rasta is not a racist doctrine, it is not promulgating reverse racism. The essence of Rasta is love, love for all forms of life (creation), which comes in a diverse array of colors, shapes, textures and vibrations. The struggle against racism is linked to the struggle against sexism, it is linked to struggle against colonialism. The struggle of the Rasta is one against fear, it is one against all forms of imperialistic exploitation and manipulative oppression. The struggle of the Rasta is linked to the struggle of the Palestinians; it is linked to the native Americans, to the Aborigines in Australia.

It is the common struggle against oppression and exploitation that links us together as brothers and sisters. It is this sense of revolutionary brotherhood that enabled Fidel Castro to contribute Cuban resources in aid of the Afrikan liberation in the 2nd half of the 20th century. It is this revolutionary brotherhood that enabled Vietnam Leader Ho Chi Minh to sympathize with Garvey and to attend some of his meetings in the USA. It is this revolutionary spirit that has bonded together Rastas from diverse races and backgrounds and made Rasta a powerful catalyst for positive change throughout the world. Rasta has demonstrated unique abilities in being able to transcend the barriers of race, class, religion, sex and creed.

Even though Rasta seeks to transcend race, and racial discrimination is not a feature of Rasta, one must face the reality of this modern world and understand the dynamics of race. This world system is one of gross race and class discrimination where the mainly white power structure controls most of the world's resources, wreaking havoc on everyone who stands in their way. Their policies are aimed at upholding their system, and imposing whatever whims they may have on the so called 'third world countries who are largely non-white.