Chanting Down Babylon: The Rastafari Reader

This anthology explores Rastafari religion, culture, and politics in Jamaica and other parts of the African diaspora. An Afro-Caribbean religious and cultural movement that sprang from the streets of Kingston, Jamaica and the 1930s, today Rastafari has close to one million adherents. The basic message of Rastafari -- the dismantling of all oppressive institutions and the liberation of humankind -- even has strong appeal to non-believers who are captivated by reggae music, the lyrics, and the \u0022immortal spirit\u0022 of its enormously popular practitioner, Bob Marley. Probing into Rastafari's still evolving belief system, political goals, and cultural expression, the contributors to this volume emphasize the importance of Africana history and the Caribbean context. \u0022Long before the term 'Afrocentricity' came into popular use in the United States, Jamaican Rastafarians had embraced the concept as the most important recipe for naming their reality and reclaiming their black heritage in the African diaspora.\u0022