Rastafari : roots and ideology /

Chevannes provides a highly accessible historical overview of the origins of Rastafarianism in Jamaica. The author--who began researching the topic in 1974--bases his analysis on the life histories of 30 male and female informants, most of whom joined the movement in the late 1930s and early '40s. He argues convincingly that the worldview of the Jamaican peasantry is reflected in early Rastafarian belief, and that revivalism and Garveyism played an important part in the formative years of the movement. Chevannes considers the contributions of early leaders such as Howell, Hibbert, Dunkley, and Hinds, and underscores the impact of internal factionalism, government oppression, and political resistance. His final chapter gives attention to the contemporary status of Rasta women, reggae, and the religion's spread to Europe and North America. Vital for students of African American religions and Caribbean religions, but also of interest to anthropologists, sociologists, and historians. Highly recommended for upper-division undergraduates and above. S. D. Glazier University of Nebraska at Kearney

The term Rastafari connotes reggae music and Bob Marley to the masses, but Rastafari is much more than a backdrop of red, yellow, and green banners for music videos. Chevannes examines the religion's history and development in detail, which means his book is also a social history of Jamaica. Chevannes begins by tracing the cultural roots of the Rastafari movement to the slave trade in Jamaica from the sixteenth through the nineteenth century, in reaction to which a foundation was laid for the spirit of resistance that was later a major factor in Rastafari's spread on the island. Chevannes also closely attends to the internal rifts and doctrinal disputes that caused denominational splits within the movement. As Rastafari moved into the larger world, some of its teachings, such as the strict observance of menstrual taboos, were attacked. Chevannes' analysis of that growth and how it is changing present-day Rastafari is fascinating and illuminating. No fanbook for couch-bound "Waspafaris" sitting around the plastic bong, this is a serious look at a living, growing religion. (Reviewed November 1, 1994)081562638XMike Tribby

Chevannes (Sociology/Univ. of the West Indies, Jamaica) uses oral history, interviews, and a good deal of historical interpretation and synthesis to present a history of Rastafarianism, the Jamaican-based pan-African movement. Crudely speaking, Rastafarian ideology has elements of African religions, Christian revivalism, and Jewish messianism. Rastafaris believe that, since being abducted from Africa during the slave trade, all those in the African diaspora have been living in exile and are destined, writes Chevannes, to be ``delivered out of captivity by a return to `Zion,' that is, Africa...or Ethiopia, the seat of Jah, Ras Tafari himself, Emperor Haile Selassie's precoronation name.'' Rastafarianism was heavily influenced by the black nationalism of Marcus Garvey, played a large part in the political turmoil of 20th-century Jamaica, and was made familiar to Americans through the music of Bob Marley and other reggae artists. Chevannes addresses all these currents and ties his history of the Rastafari to domestic Jamaican politics and to global pan-African movements. Scholarly and cautious about making factual claims without sufficient data, Chevannes is also unabashedly sympathetic to the Rastafari.