Haile Selassie

Haile Selassie

Haile Selassie who was believed to be a descendant from the line of David by Solomon, was a symbol to the black man. He exhibited that the black man had the capacity to be strong. This image that Selassie provided, was contrary to what blacks saw in Ethiopia, despite, Ethiopia being a black nation that had been independent for thousands of years. As a result of his assumed decadency and what he embodied, both Ethiopian’s and Jamaican’s assigned him as their savior. Within “Classic Black Nationalism: From the American Revolution to Marcus Garvey”, Young illustrates how Selassie was able to transcend form Africa to Jamaica proving that he is the black Messiah.

On November 2, 1930, Ras Tafari, at the age of thirty-seven, was crowned Emperor Haile Selassie I, King of Kings, Lord of Lords, Conquering Lion of the tribe of Judah. Form this point on, he ruled as Emperor of Ethiopia for the next forty-four years.

Haile Selassie accomplished many great things during his rein as Emperor of Ethiopia. Perhaps his most important contribution was his efforts to further the education of his people. “Education was pressed forward on all levels-primary, secondary, and at the university level” (Gorham 140). Selassie had also pushed for the abolition of slavery in the 1920s and made a new constitution in which the citizens attained the right to vote in 1958.

Selassie was a large advocate for peace. In his speech he stresses the importance of disarmament:

Disarmament has become the urgent imperative of our time. I do not say this because I equate the absence of arms o peace, or because I believe that bringing an end to nuclear arms race automatically guarantees the peace…Disarmament is vital today, quite simply, because of the immense destructive capacity of which men dispose.

Haile Selassie ruled Ethiopia nobly. He looked for the betterment of his people, and the modernization of his country. He wanted his country to benefit from the implementation of good education can do for a country. He brought Ethiopia into the international scene by helping Ethiopia to be accepted into the League of Nations in 1928. He made the world understand that his country lived and bled like all others when he pleaded for help against the Italians in Geneva in 1936. He held his people in regard when he drafted Ethiopia‘s two constitutions in 1931 and 1958. Selassie wanted to pull Ethiopia out of its archaic existence and matriculate it into modernity.

In 1829, through the “Ethiopian Manifesto” Young identifies all members of the African Diaspora as “Ethiopians”. Young refers to Psalm 68:31, which states. “Prince shall come out of Egypt… Ethiopia shall stretch out her hands to God.” Young