Nomad: And Ninja, seriously man, you say, "it's your own faults, you've only got yourself to blame because of what happened half a millenium ago by your ancient white great,great,great,great,great,great,great,great,great,great x25 grand-parents"
I'm obviously para-phrasing there but words to that effect. How does anyone even know what color I am? And if I was white, what the hell was it to do with me what happened 4-500 years ago? I wasn't a Colonist.
Who cares what you were personally? I would love to be purely and only judged on the content of my character too but even on a Rastafarian website I got a white dude consistently lying about me because he thinks he knows me because I'm black. And doesn't understand he's using and reacting to stereotypes. And then there's this other dude who tells us we were dealt a shit hand (being born as the descendants of slaves? And talking about songs of social oppression how is race NOT part of what you were implying?) as part of the context of the question about who Selassie was/is. But understand when I talk about "white people"... and I dare say this is true of every black person on Earth, we are not talking about every single individual who identifies as white. People get offended so quickly over so little as if they're the ones who got lynched; who had people picnicking with their children to watch them get hung or burned and took parts of their bodies home as souvenirs. So stop being so damn sensitive!
We know that not all whites owned slaves. Just like all white aren't racist. We don't need you to apologize or run political interference for your race. Listen to what's being said and try to understand the point. When you say stuff like "the vast majority of colored people" you sound like a racist from 1954 Alabama. I wish there was a class you could all take called "Understanding the Black Man". Lesson 1. Stop calling us "colored". We've adapted to using terminology like "people of color" but it's actually ridiculous and tiresome to keep hearing it from you. Moreover the idea that you know what's in the heart of the "vast majority" who you obviously haven't interviewed or polled simply underscores the ignorance that is totally avoidable by asking simple questions instead of imagining that you already know the answer. And to further say "that's a fact" really shows you have no idea but aren't opposed to making baseless claims about people you don't know who don't look like you. That's the very core of racism.
You want us to not think on racial lines or even talk about race and meanwhile you're using Selassie to tell to tell us how we should behave on racial issues and you don't see the huge problem with a white person telling black people how to act. Next you'll tell me you didn't mean it that way and that maybe I'm the one being too sensitive. But if anyone has the right to be sensitive between the two of us, guess what, it ain't you.
You said "only around 5-10 percent of people who claim to be rastafari are 'color blind'". This is a common mistake white people make and one of the 'tells' that someone is white (again.. shared cultural tendencies). Being 'color blind' is a white thing. Black people never asked for that. In fact, the claim of 'color blindness' offends me. You want me not to see my own damn color? You need to see color. You can't appreciate it if you can't see it.
Acting blind to something so obvious is like pretending it isn't true and feels like rejection. How do you understand the first thing about someone when you are actively pretending they aren't black? Ridiculous. We want you to see blackness and learn to appreciate it. We're not ashamed of it so why would we want to hide it? We only ever have to hide it to better blend into a world that judges us for being black and uses that to deny us rights, freedoms, and opportunities. But pretending someone isn't black is kind of like an indictment and an insult; as if there's something wrong with it that we need to pretend. So what am I? Clear? No, I'm black. I'm very black. My skin is brown but I am very much black. And the pride I have as a black man is the same pride white people tried to beat out of us. So see me in my full glory. What whites said was a curse in my greatest blessing.
Saying that "Everyone knows on here" what you mean when you're asking if we believe Selassie is/was God... This is exactly why you got the answers you got. Because you can't use YOUR definition when other people are using another and expect them to be like... "no, he isn't God" when that is the terminology floating around Rastafarianism to some degree. But everyone cannot speak for the exact beliefs of everyone else because sharing a carbon copy of the same beliefs is not what makes someone Rasta. So just as you cannot push YOUR idea of God onto other people, we cannot do the same to each other. And you're asking us to give an answer sufficient TO YOU (answer TO YOU) on behalf of our community. So you're wrong on a few fronts. Now you have a choice. You can either accept being wrong and try to understand what God means to OTHER people whose beliefs you're asking about. Or you can struggle, trying to force people to use your meaning and version of God as their answer. Let's see how far you get with that. But the question has been answered at this point by multiple people. If you don't like it that doesn't seem to be our problem.
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