Tony Allen: autobiography of the founding drummer of Afrobeat

Biographies – and autobiographies – of “cool” musicians are definitely in my field of interest. What are “cool” musicians depends of course on one’s personal tastes and preferences.

WORLD OF THE COOL

Within this realm of my highly personal “world of the cool”, also the music of Nigerian artist Fela Kuti belongs. I am mainly a Reggae fan – follow that most – but have a broad interest in Black and African music. Kuti with his creation of Afrobeat – not to be confused with recent AfrobeatS –, since the 1970s, out of influences from jazz, funk, highlife, and local Nigerian Yoruba and other traditional African music, therefore fits my taste.

Plus, I am a percussionist, sometimes trap drummer (or playing other instruments: keys, harmonica, strings), so a drum- and rhythm-oriented musician. Partly via Afro-Cuba, partly directly, I studied Nigerian (and Benin) Yoruba traditional hand drums- and other percussion (e.g. bell/agogo and shekere) patterns, increasing naturally my interest for Fela Kuti’s music. I liked the funky grooves and call-and-response aspects, but the lengthy, jazzy escapades and solos, on many of his lengthy songs, I got less into. The lyrics and vocals in turn did appeal to me. So, a bit mixed, but overall I was and am positive about the interesting music of Fela ‘Anikulapo’ Kuti.

During this sideline/semi-marginal appreciation of Fela Kuti’s work, I also soon found out who was that groovy drummer on many of Fela’s songs was Tony Allen, like Fela, a Nigerian, and who was from Lagos.

All this made it “cool” for me to read an autobiography of this drummer Tony Allen. It is called: 'Tony Allen : an autobiography of the master drummer of Afrobeat' (Tony Allen w. Michael E. Veal), and was released in 2013. What follows is a review, from my above mentioned perspective: “somewhat” a Fela Kuti fan, and knowledgeable, but far from all-knowing, about Kuti or Allen..

AUTO

A difference with other musical biographies I read, is the “auto” aspect: this work is an autobiography by Tony Allen, in conversation with music researcher and journalist Michael E. Veal, who wrote several interesting works, on Fela Kuti, yet also on Dub and Jamaican music, with depth.

This work is however based on what Tony Allen told himself, only worked out as a coherent whole by Veal, whose writing style I like.

I did enjoy the read from the start, for its musical themes, but also for wider social, educational aspects, learning about the Lagos, Nigeria context: the big city, daily living, nightlife (important for musicians like Allen), Nigerian history and politics, postcolonial developments, class differences, and the music scene.

DIFFICULT RELATIONSHIP

The story of how Allen entered Kuti’s life, to become one of his main musicians in the 1960s, proved by itself also of high literary quality, as is the developing relationship with Fela over time. Several dramatic layers, and manifested behavioural psychology.

That “developing” – and problematic – relationship with Fela Kuti, is one of the main threads in this work, even though Allen also discusses his own, other musical efforts before and besides with Fela Kuti.

The difficult relationship with Fela, stems from Fela’s dominant role in his band, as main (long: only) composer of all parts: even if Tony Allen had a special status, Allen explains in the book: his drum parts were not pre-written, and got free reign (and trust) of Fela, to make them hismself.

The friendship and trust that this implies, as between old friends, should not be exaggerated, Allen shows in this autobiography. Fela tended to be self-involved, and, as Allen tellingly states: “did not follow ideas that did not come from himself”. Fela could also be selfish and envious, and untrustworthy, such as with the money he owed his musicians, also to Allen, resulting in increasing irritations.

The love of the music seemed to keep Tony working with Fela, and all of his ego, despite personal issues and difficulties. They also shared an early passion for Jazz. So friends with things in common, but Tony Allen did not like or understand all of Fela Kuti’s behaviours, or life choices, - and even at times felt personally wronged by him -, but musically they seemed in line with each other.

This is always an intriguing contradiction, I find, as music comes from one’s soul and personality – one would think -, so could be hard to separate from the same person’s behaviour. I guess it requires an abstract level of thinking, and the isolation of art, from often easily corruptible and confused human beings, and their weaknesses.

MARIJUANA USE

Certain substances, as often in music scenes, played a role in behavior changes. Fela at first eschewed marijuana/weed smoking, fearing overall its effects on music making, yet later turned around and smoked it more throughout his life and career, even becoming a proponent of its legalization. This heightened Fela Kuti’s conflict with Nigerian authorities, which outlawed weed smoking harshly, with draconian punishments.

Allen points in this book at different effects on different people of weed smoking, noting an extreme one on Fela, in that Kuti changed totally when he started smoking it (relatively late in life, and later than his band members), and that the “old Fela” since then even seemed gone. Tony Allen himself smoked weed regularly, he tells in this autobiography, though had to hide it sometimes. In earlier years, Kuti forebade and fined weed use by his musicians during gigs, but – again – made an exception for his friend Allen, whose weed routine Fela dared not touch. Fela told Allen that the weed to his surprise did not affect Allen’s drumming, and Allen argued in response that it even improved his drumming, in some sense.

I think the latter is open for debate. I personally think (and experienced) that “sense of rhythm” outweighs at all times physical or mental conditions (good or bad: joy, illness, sleep deprivation, drugs, etc.).. It’s too basic a natural thing.

YORUBA

An interesting thread in this autobiography, I find the Yoruba cultural heritage Fela and Tony shared. Allen’s mother was originally Ghanaian (Ewe ethnicity), but grew up in a Yoruba environment too. Both Fela and Tony came from middle classes, so received more European/Christian influences than others. Fela even more than Tony, but later – under influence of Black Power and African pride movements, picked up when the band was in Los Angeles, US, in the late 1960s, - Fela returned to that African heritage, to take distance from (neocolonial) European and British dominant influences. Culturally, spiritually, in life choices, political stances, lyrics, etcetera. Name changes, and open polygamy (he openly married several wives, living with them in a communal setting at the Kalakuta area, singing with him), followed, as became quite known.

Tony Allen did not go along so much – in all aspects - with this contextual “Africanization” process, as Fela perceived it, but still made music with him, and remained his (critical) friend. The original Yoruba religion or faith, (with Babalawo priets) was predictably one of the things Fela “returned to” for African revival. Allen knew those traditional beliefs in fact better than Fela, from his upbringing, but seemed more skeptical and critical about them than Fela, but that could relate to a stronger Christian influence on him.

What is therefore interesting, is that when Tony describes his trip to Bahia, Brazil, later in his life, he still appreciated that the religious culture of Yoruba descendants there (of Afro-Brazilians) – Candomblé, related also to Santería -, still seemed quite similar to that in Yorubaland itself. He especially praised the “polished”, but artistic version of the Yoruba spirituality, expressed in Candomblé, as less wild and “bloody” affairs than in Nigeria.

Whatever his stance on local traditional culture, with a Yoruba (and Ewe) background and cultural influence, the traditional “hand drum” and percussion patterns helped shape his rhythmic and trap drumming style, fitting a genre like Afrobeat, “Africanizing”, so to speak, Jazz and Funk (a.o.). Local African “pop” genres like Highlife and Juju (in turn of course influenced by African traditional music), also shaped his drumming from early on.

This Highlife was made with his band Koola Lobitos in the 1960s, around the period when he first met Fela Kuti. With Fela Kuti he was in Koola Lobitos making Highlife. I heard some of these late 1960s songs, and found them appealing and groovy in a “mellow” way, often lasting about 3 minutes, and not “long-ass” songs Fela would make later.

DRUMMING TECHNIQUE

Allen explicitly says in this autobiography that he kept traditional African aspects in his drumming, besides his adoration for US and other Jazz and Funk drummers, some of whom he met or worked with over time. The “Jazz” was mostly added in time, after the Koola Lobitos period, as a process of living and learning, and new inputs.

The relationship with Fela and other musicians – the environments, so to speak, - including of live shows in different places -, take more space in this book that his actual drumming as technique, but it receives some attention. Allen shows an interest in possibilities of the “hi-hat” - as part of drum kits - as influence from Jazz, adding texture to his drumming. As a separate rhythm on hi-hat is part of African polyrhythm structure and of African origin, it returned back within the diaspora, so to speak.

HI-HAT

That instrument, the “cymbals, is said to be originally from China, and via the Turks and Armenians travelled westward, and in time was incorporated by European folk groups, and finally entering pop music in the US, including Black music, mostly via New Orleans, by the early 1900s, when “modern drum kits” as we know them first appeared (around 1906). The playing styles of cymbals differ of course between Chinese/Asian, European fanfare music, and Black/African genres, showing an interesting grounding role of culture, and of mind over matter.

Tony Allen made the hi-hat more used and known in Nigerian drumming, especially as Fela Kuti became more famous, even worldwide, and Tony Allen helped shape the Afrobeat genre as such, by the 1970s. The famous Jazz drummer Max Roach was a main influence on his adding hi-hat, including lessons in the US (in Los Angeles), in the Late 1960s, by the famed jazz drummer Elvin Jones.

The hi-hat is a somewhat underestimated aspect in Black music, I think, or in music in general. Also, in most of Reggae music since the later 1970s up to the Reggae from “now” – especially from Jamaica – the hi-hat use in drum kits is crucial in the groove and riddims. In Bob Marley’s Reggae this was not so obvious yet, but hi-hat variations increased since then in Reggae. From current artists like Tarrus Riley, Luciano, and Beres Hammond, to Sizzla and Anthony B. Also the “crash cymbal” is now taken to artistic heights in dance-oriented Jamaican Reggae.

(I spoke recently with a Reggae drummer in the Netherlands - when jamming with my percussion with him on stage -, and who usually drums with Jampara and his BatalLion band. He confirmed how for Reggae in fact several “crash cymbals” tend to be required for drumsets, while the “ride cymbal” is in Reggae used less, but the hi-hat all the more.)

The hi-hat (and often crash cymbal) sometimes gets “lost in translation” when non-Jamaicans (like in Europe) drum Reggae (even if further quite apt), almost like a remaining “inimitable” Jamaican trade mark of Reggae, haha.

Tony Allen used the “ride cymbal” in turn relatively more (than usual in Reggae), while his jazzy, mellow groove, called less for the climactic “crash” cymbal, than in Reggae.

INIMITABLE

Not without self-aggrandizing, Tony Allen, also states that his developed Afrobeat drumming style – under as said various influences (African, jazz, funk) - could not be copied, for instance when drummers had to replace him.. and after he left Fela’s band (in 1979). Allen found it significant that after he left Fela’s band, Fela needed more percussionists alongside the trap drummer, only to achieve that “Tony Allen” rhythmic feel: so four musicians replacing what Allen could do alone.

He worked for 16 years with Fela: longer than with anyone else, Tony Allen states in this book. With ups and downs, and regular doubts about continuing. When Fela’s conflicts with Nigerian authorities increased, or when Fela’s behavior became difficult – payment avoidance - or an ego trip, even others around Tony advised him to leave Fela Kuti’s band, and further his own career. He hung on in there, mostly for the love of the music by Fela, and because they “went far back” as friends.

There is something both beautiful and tragic in this troubled relationship.

AFTER FELA

Even after leaving Fela Kuti’s band, in 1979, Allen remained friends with Fela, and met him regularly. He even visited shows of Fela with other band members, noting how Fela still came with new, good music, but that the drum part became a bit weaker than the sound he shaped with Fela for years. These later drummers with Fela used even patterns borrowed from Allen, on earlier songs, but never reached the same height, at least according to Allen, and some critics. Even Fela at times asked Tony to come back as band member, or play with him once more.. “Not that again”, was the main feeling of Allen at that point.

MIGRATION

The period “after Fela” of Tony Allen, is also a “migration” story, as Allen eventually settles in Europe, a while London, and more definitely in Paris, where he finally remained residing until his death at the age of 79, in 2020. Until 1984 he still lived in Nigeria, where political problems recurred.

He later married a French woman in Paris, and further continued making music, collaborating with various other musicians, active in other genres, but who admired Allen as founder of Afrobeat, when with Fela Kuti. He worked with African big names like King Sunny Adé, Manu Dibango, Hugh Masakela, but also with European and US artists, like French artists, Blur’s Damon Albern, the Clash’s Paul Simonon, Parliament/Funkadelic members, and several others.

He also recorded on albums of artists like Zap Mama (Belgian artist, born in DR Congo) and Charlotte Gainsbourg, to give more examples.

EXPERIMENTATION

Allen proved to be open for experimentation in this later musical stage, saying explicitly he wanted to renew and be challenged, and some albums were influenced by more modern, electronic music, Dub, Funk or Rap. That electronic music/techno was at first not a success, in Allen’s own views, as French “technical guys” used his patterns to trigger synth/electronic sounds from them, thereby violating and subduing his live trap drumming.

Later, with others, he found a better balance, with his own Afrobeat style kept more intact, with added electronics or Dub elements, such as for the NEPA and Black Voices (1999) projects/albums. On some songs of these albums you notice a vague Reggae touch, more often – though – the Dub aspects are in the echoing “technique” and production (mixing in and out/fading), rather than in a Reggae groove, with which Dub once originated. An interesting mix, nonetheless, of Allen’s subtle yet vibrant Afrobeat grooves, with modern electronics and genres.

Maybe, like European Dub as separated from Reggae, - or “jazz-rock” (like by Weather Report) - some songs on this album bring to mind - not everyone’s “cup of tea”, but at least Allen’s exquisite “rootsy” and groovy drumming ensured that such mixed albums maintained musical quality, and a solid, “rootsy” rhythmical base.. I personally am sometimes in the mood for such “Afro-jazz-rock” experimental instrumentals (like I sometimes am for a band like Weather Report), though maybe not always or every single day.

Such musical projects, and involved people, get much attention in this work, but also his personal life. The difficulties of migration and legal residence in France, and – as more often in musicians’ biographical works – substance abuse, beyond the marijuana/weed Allen was smoking for a long time already. Allen later had a problematic “heroin period” in France, with some hardships of getting rid of his heroin addiction’s draining effects on his body and mind. He achieved this, luckily, and began to feel “full of life” (libido, energy, etc.) again, after becoming clean.

He remained active as musician and performer up to his death at 79, in 2020, working with international artists.

ON BALANCE

Personally, I learned some new things from this autobiography, rendering it in this sense useful for me. I imagined a Yoruba influence on Tony Allen’s drumming, but there was apparently also a Highlife influence (and from Ghanaian, Igbo and other music), and how Jazz aspects were added more and more to his style, with the hi-hat as focus.

In the early part of the autobiography, an insightful part is when political troubles within Nigeria, interethnic tensions between Yoruba, Hausa, and Igbo, and the separation movement through Biafra of the Igbo, after oil discovery in SE Nigeria (around 1967). After independence from Britain (1960), these tensions slowly arose. Allen argues that politicians – still under economic control of Britain, by the way - stimulated this tribalism and interethnic tensions, hardly there before.

In the band of Allen there were Igbo and Yoruba. Around the mid-1960s an anti-Igbo rhetoric developed in the North of Nigeria among the Hausa, related to power grabs/coups of northerners and Igbo alike, and other power issues, taking among leading Hausa even racist-like, anti-Igbo, dehumanizing forms (comparing Igbo to animals like snakes), as racism usually does. When performing during this time in the North, with some Igbo band members, the Yoruba band members, like Allen and others, served as a “protective shield” for them, Allen relates.

These kind of 1960s stories of Lagos and Nigeria, by a touring musician, I found educational and vividly told, even if they were apart from the music itself, of course. On the strictly musical side of things, I got better insight into how Tony Allen helped shape this style known as Afrobeat in the 1970s, recording many albums with Fela Kuti’s Africa 70 band.

ORGANIC

It was – as with many genres – an organic and gradual cultural and personal process, living and learning among various musicians, musical changes and new influences, mixing or “synthesizing” these into new forms.

It is comparable to how Reggae developed from Ska and Rocksteady in the late 1960s, Bossa Nova mainly from Samba and Jazz, Cuban Son and Rumba from Congo and Yoruba (and Spanish) patterns, later Cuban Timba (1990s) from Salsa/Son and Funk, Rock & Roll once from R&B mixed with “white” Country music, Soul once from Gospel and R&B.

The Ghanaian Highlife in which Allen more or less started playing in the 1960s, itself also mixed Akan/Ghanaian and African traditional elements with elements from Palm Wine music in British colonial Africa, Calypso, Cuban “guajeo” (a repeated semi-rhythmic guitar pattern), and European music.

Interestingly, with the addition of a strong (US) Jazz influence to the highlife and other genres – a shared passion of Tony Allen and Fela Kuti – Afrobeat developed in the 1970s in Nigeria, but besides a logical outcome or, “sign of the times”, also individual attitudes and creativity played a role, besides being a Jazz fan.

Though Tony seemed less a “wild and crazy” creative artist-type than Fela, and more technical/practical and level-headed as a person, Allen still gave way to his individual creativity – as said allowed by Fela – in his drum additions, shaping Fela Kuti’s albums’ Afrobeat sound.

What set this apart, and made Tony Allen thus so unique – and influential! - as trap drummer, even across genres? Well, Allen says about this (quoted from this autobiography):

“Forget about this fight you want to put on the drums. Don’t fight the drums, just deliver coolly. I don’t like using force to play the drums, , because I know when I have to hit them hard. I know when I want something to be stronger. So I’m playing in between – it’s like a kind of caressing..”,

Later on:

“When I was learning to play highlife from Ojo, I decided that I wanted to be a smooth drummer, not a noisemaker…” “ I saw that the drums had different tones. And you must make those tones relate – it’s just like singing”.

SMOOTH OR PUMPING

Indeed, it is this “smooth” sound, mixed with a jazzy “conversational” style (dialoguing with other instruments, from the local polyrhythmic tradition), which makes Allen’s drumming style “subtle” when compared from what we know from other African Diaspora/Black music, sounding more, well, “pumping” – for lack of a better word -, groove-wise.

As a “rhythm” musician (percussion, drums), I found it still interesting, and of course also tried Tony Allen’s drumming patterns out myself, to get in that type of Fela-like Afrobeat groove. I enjoyed that subtlely and finesse sometimes.

Yet, I myself - while having had jazz influences – have been overall more used to “pumping” (for lack of a better word) grooves from Reggae, straight-up James Brown-like Funk, Afro-Cuban Rumba, and “pre-jazzified” Yoruba and Igbo traditional music (conversational/polyrhythmic, but more “thunderous” than “smooth), that influenced my percussion playing. Allen’s drum was, by the way, also often “softer” in the sonic mix than in these other genres.

The drumming in Reggae, for instance, has a direct relationship with the Bass guitar (usually the chording instrument), as a “marriage” which involves conversation, but as much “coming together” and unisono. In a practical sense: bass line accents and drum accents fall on the same count, to keep that pumping groove going, similar to how “the one” (of 4/4) functions in James Brown funk (accentuated by main instruments), though in Reggae, that accent is often also on the Third (or Second, in double time), and often a bit on the One.

There are different drummers within Reggae too, with different drumming styles. Interestingly, Bob Marley’s and the Wailers drummer, Carlton Barret, had a style more similar to Tony Allen (more jazz-like shuffle), - smoother, less “pumping” - while other equally great drummers in Reggae had more “straight” rhythms, alongside these shuffle/swing aspects (Style Scott, Sly Dunbar, Santa Davis, Horsemouth), more as in the Congo tradition.

The wide variety in Black/African Diaspora music, let’s just say. The difference between the Swing (originally Guinee/Mali region) and Straight Rhythm tradition (Central Africa, Congo, “forest Africa”), influencing to differing genres the various Afro-American genres. I discussed this before on this blog.

Yorubaland is more in that “straight rhythm” (“forest Africa”) tradition, originally (like Congo/Central Africa), but the strong Jazz influence (shuffle, swing) on Tony Allen, and his personal roots and interpretations, rendered his drumming indeed of an unique style, which he maintained up to his death in 2020, and influenced others, also outside of Afrobeat. Jazzy and smooth, yet groovy.

Recommendable reading.

Long Walk To Freedom

Despite its pollution by the pushy commercial nonsense now all too “bon ton” in the modern Western world, the term “must read” does – I think – apply to some books also genuinely and morally.

HISTORICAL IMPORTANCE

I am referring to historical importance. Books that even would improve mankind if more people had read them. One of those “must read” book in my opinion is the autobiography 'Long Walk To Freedom', by Nelson Mandela (pubished in 1994). A well-known historical figure, of international – perhaps even universal – appeal –, Mandela as subject goes way beyond activist “niche” markets with particular interests, for, say, Africa, or “the Black struggle”.

Both these themes – Africa and the Black struggle – are of course more than “niche” interests, and in fact important to learn about global and human history for people of all races – in my opinion -, but are rather ignored compared to other themes. The white/European guilt complex about the colonial and slavery past explains this disinterest partly, as well as remaining racist and colonial notions. And material interests. Simply said: the US, Europe, but also Chinese, Japanese, or Arabs are economically too powerful to ignore (and just exploit). Africa unfortunately not yet so.

ANACHRONISM

Still, despite this bias among some white or non-African people, the person Nelson Mandela breaks in a sense through barriers, even of relatively closed minds. The blatantly racist Apartheid system in South Africa lasted up the early 1990s, and was met with moral indignation more and more throughout the world, including among liberal whites. Seemingly a remnant of Europe’s colonial past, the harsh discrimination and violence seemed an immoral anachronism, as Western powers claimed to have become more civilized.

In a superficial sense, Nelson Mandela became over time a welcome figurehead for the anti-Apartheid struggle for people worldwide, due to Mandela’s firm stance, yet also thoughtful, nonviolent, and dignified image.

Leaving all this - superficial “images”, white guilt, and liberal self-congratulations – aside, I just considered it time for me to finally read this autobiography by Nelson Mandela. I knew about these memoirs before, but did not have the time to read them yet. I also thought I had learned over time roughly enough about South Africa from different sources: books and articles, but also first-hand accounts by a white friend, who told me he had to leave South Africa during Apartheid, for his relationship with a Black African woman. I saw some good documentaries about it too,.. and some not so good ones too. Likewise, some good movies, and some bad (read: “too Hollywood”) movies too.

KNOWLEDGE GAPS

Still, there still were here subtle “knowledge gaps”. I am interested in persons, their life stories, especially of influential heroes and intriguing personalities like Nelson Mandela. Yet, admittedly, there were also some questions about that whole Apartheid period in South Africa I still had. I am relatively knowledgeable about colonial history – and African history - , but lack some knowledge about especially the recent history in South Africa. I thought this book could give me some answers.

To start with: the book was a very good and pleasant read. I even forgot soon it was relatively voluminous (over 750 pages). There’s a Dutch expression that translates as “it reads like a train”, meaning: an easy, good read. These memoirs by Mandela did indeed “read like a train”.

So did I learn new things? Yes, I did. Obviously about Nelson Mandela’s life story. I knew he was from the Xhosa ethnic group (some people might not even know that), speaking a pretty southern Bantu language (with clicks). He became more and more an opponent of racist colonialism forced upon his country South Africa by the British and other White colonizers, but first became a lawyer, also to help his people. Like with other people – and as is simply human -, his consciousness about the injustices grew over time.

What I learned most from this autobiography were the political changes in South Africa itself.

NAZISM

There is a protest song by African Reggae singer Alpha Blondy (hailing from Ivory Coast) titled Apartheid Is Nazism. This book taught me that this is not just metaphorical. Apparently, as Mandela explained, there was support and sympathy among the Afrikaners or Boers (White South Africans of mainly Dutch, Protestant descent) for Hitler’s Nazi regime in Germany in the 1930s/1940s. This went even beyond tensions between South African Whites of British or Boer/Afrikaner descent. South Africa was a British colony, in the commonwealth, and when Britain joined the allies in declaring war against Hitler Germany, South Africa automatically went along.

Yet, there was an opposing movement among some White Boers or Afrikaners in South Africa pleading for at least neutrality. Wars between Britain and the Boers have been fought, and this related to this, alongside conservative views. Well now, the Nasionale Partij (National Party) that established and expanded Apartheid in South Africa fully in 1948, was led by White Boers and Afrikaners, with leaders once openly supporting Nazi Germany, such as later prime-minister Vorster, who even went to prison for this stance.

Another main architect of Apartheid and segregation, the Amsterdam-born Hendrik Verwoerd, also seemed to have such Nazi sympathies, and chose to study in then Nazi-influenced Germany.

Links between Nazism and Apartheid continued, an example being the father of the now influential German billionaire Klaus Schwab, founder of the WEF, whose father was member of the Nazi party, and later worked with the Apartheid government/regime in South Africa. Some even note much similarities in the methods of Apartheid, especially “petty” daily-level policies – in the covid 19/corona pass “new normal” since 2020 – son Klaus Schwab seeks to promote, albeit now discriminating more on supposed medical grounds, than on racial grounds. Also, “lockdowns” became normalized since 2020, and are similar to control methods used by the Apartheid regime.

Since Hendrik Verwoerd – known as the architect of Apartheid - was thus an Amsterdam-born Dutchman, this Nazi sympathy cannot be explained by the fact that the Boers/Afrikaners were also partly of German descent (besides mainly of Dutch, and some French Huguenot descent). Presumably, the racial hierarchy fitted the time, and colonial culture and interests.

Identity and even more “ideology” after all almost always relate to “interests”, in my opinion. Delusional ideas about racial superiority and inferiority – and primitive ethnic pride – exist, but get mixed with colonial interests and properties, resulting in migrant whites treating indigenous Africans as burdens in their own country: insane, even psychopathic, but from this viewpoint explainable. They also defended their material interests and wealth.

FIGHT AGAINST APARTHEID

Mandela relates it well and balanced, though. Though the strict Protestant Boers of mainly Dutch descent were largely to blame for the National Party’s Apartheid policy since 1948 (though tacitly supported by White Britons), the White British were before this also racist and colonialist, - and exploitative - as elsewhere in Africa, but more indirectly and subtly. The way the Boers-led National Party operated with its Apartheid policy had indeed strongly Fascist elements, with “democracy” (e.g. voting) only reserved for a minority of “superior” White people. The majority Black population was since around 1950 openly made second-class citizens, stripped of most human rights, and made dependent on White people.. Indeed, in their own country. They were segregated into separate Bantustans, with in name self-rule.

Before 1950, discrimination of Africans was already there, including a “pass-system” restricting their free movement (not required for Whites), and an European bias in education and economy.

This harshly racist Apartheid is what Mandela fought against, with the African National Congress (ANC) organization – already founded in 1912 -, in which he became a leading figure. Predictably – as he narrates in this book -, repression, harassment, oppression, and persecution of him by the White authorities ensued (bans, censorship, limited movement, arrests, spells of incarceration), ending up in the (well-known) long incarceration at Robben Island (near Cape Town) of Mandela, as a political prisoner, lasting from 1964 up to the 1980s. Since the late 1980s, Mandela was transferred to another, more comfortable prison on the mainland, as political changes seemed somehow to be on the horizon. International condemnation has increased by the Late 1987. Very hesitantly, by the way: and the hesitance of powers like the US under Reagan and the UK under Thatcher to condemn Apartheid more strongly was morally dubious.

Indeed, the National Party government became by them more open for negotiations – especially as international sanctions were put in place (supported now by the US and the UK) -, which Mandela initiated on behalf of the ANC, toward his goal of multiracial democratization.

This is “in a nutshell” the context of these memoirs, but I recommend people to read it fully, for it is very insightful, precisely because of the details and how Mandela relates it. It gives insight about an oppressive political system in South Africa, as well as human psychology. It also shows Mandela’s intelligence and open mind.

HUMANITY

I noted through this book that Mandela indeed had an open mind, and was a good judge of character, placing humanity first. He commented on when white authoritative figures treated him rough and rude, but also when there were more reasonable or “kinder” people among them, only brainwashed too much in the system. He still kept hope due to the “glimmer of humanity” he even saw in guards in grim prisons he was in under Apartheid.

In the final, more reflective part of this book, Mandela says it eloquently: “Man’s goodness is a flame that can be hidden but never extinguished”..

In a way, that’s the ultimate rebellion. Despite harsh personalized aggression and oppression keeping your sane mind and composure, allowing even compassion. Maintaining good sense, reason, and your “cool”, even when instability (“losing your mind”) seems understandable. That stability and firmness of character of course also makes a good leader. Not one to be easily blown away or weakened. Neither easily corrupted or bribed.

Furthermore, Mandela maintained a love for all humanity, his account shows, which seemed sincere, and quite remarkable. Imprisoned since 1964 for decades until 1990, he states in this book that he through those years he learned to hate evil systems more than people.. even those working for/in it. Remarkable, as the cynical route of “I’ll be hard: after all, the world is against me..”, could be the choice of a lesser, less compassionate soul.

More things I learned I can mention – without spoiling or giving a way too much of this very readable book – is the lying propaganda of the National Party, and how it claimed to fight “Communists”. It mainly used this label to “frame” opponents to their (Apartheid) policy, mostly unjustly, as dangerous rebels or terrorists. This included Mandela and the ANC. This proved effective to gain support of the then anti-Communist USA.

Again the strength of character and wisdom of Mandela showed here. He did not consider himself a Communist, and above all certainly not opposed the National party on that ground: it was their racist Apartheid system he fought. Yet, Mandela explains how he studied aspects of Communism to examine its workability or possible usefulness, with an open mind. Never really embracing it, but neither excluding it in advance. He determined his own values.

ROBBEN ISLAND

Mandela’s account on prison life at Robben island since 1964 was fascinating and educational. In broad lines, summarizing what being there does to a man – not always detailed – but evident nonetheless.

Not everyone can imagine being for years locked up and at the mercy of guards, wardens and state, and throughout this unjust solitude, it seemed Mandela’s “hope” and firm stance kept his spirits up.. against all odds.

Prison for political prisoners under Apartheid South Africa – and on Robben island - was meant not just to “lock away”, but rather to make an intimidating political “fascist” point as well. Much of the behaviour of wardens, such as strict rules, limited favours, and structural discrimination and humiliation, can also be described as “extreme bullying”.

This could take “calculated” forms: easing of bans or prohibitions, extra favours granted (somewhat better food, study time, books, allowed to talk, a bit less work) were mostly conditional or temporary, and often wickedly compensated with new bothersome rules and limits.

The discriminatory Apartheid system translated by the way on the small scale as well: Black Africans got lesser food in prison, compared to Coloureds (mixed-raced), or Indians. Wisely, Mandela could see through all these evil games over the years, and somehow rise above it, keeping his focus on his ideals and principles, and a better future.

These ideals were essentially positive, inclusive and antiracist: it emphasized equal individual rights for all South Africans (of all races), and the One Man One Vote principle. A far cry from the segregated racial inequality the Apartheid policy upheld, aimed at Black Africans’ dependence on Whites.

The “Socialist-leaning” focus of the ANC was also multiracial, which conflicted a bit with other Black African resistance movements in South Africa at the time. In these memoirs, Mandela speaks for the ANC, while explaining how its “pro-Black, yet multiracial policy” would according to him be better than of the pro-ethnic African movements, such as the Pan-Africanist Congress (the PAC), that broke away from the ANC in 1959, having a more exclusionary Black Power stance.

This PAC objected to ANC’s tight connections to Communists and White and Indian people (even if against Apartheid), they considered too undermining of the Black liberation and authorhisp. Mandela considered such stances immature, while being not much less radical.

Radical, in that he never gave up violent resistance against the White apartheid regime. He thought this rebellion necessary for the time being, while preferring where possible peaceful means to overthrow it.

STRATEGY

These memoirs are thus – largely – about socio-political “strategy”: how Mandela endured the oppression and incarceration only to keep his values and goals of a free, democratic, nonracial South Africa intact. This I find quite admirable: he gave his life for his nation and people.

Being this “freedom fighter” – he resumes in the final part of the book – almost inevitably is at odds with a “common” stable private family life: a steady job, a present father, loyal husband, etcetera. He saw his children much less than he wanted when imprisoned, and though his love for Winnie Mandela was strong and guiding him, a practical “harmonious love life under one roof” hardly could develop with his life. He really gave his life for the struggle.

“It seems the destiny of freedom fighters to have unstable personal lives”, as Mandela summarizes it in this book.

FINAL PART

The final, more reflective part follows on Nelson Mandela’s final release from prison, and the victory since 1990, when Apartheid ended, and South Africa democratized since then, resulting in an electoral victory of the ANC. These include beautiful reflections full of wisdom, captured in some brilliant citations. Mandela e.g. writes (on the way forward after Apartheid): “to be free is not merely to cast off one’s chains, but to live in a way that respects and enhances the freedom of others”..

The problem of violence among Africans (Zulu versus others) was a problem in South Africa regaining freedom, and Mandela relates how he assumed the National Party regime’s involvement, hoping to derail the changes through destabilization, and holding on to “White power” as long as possible. Again, through "divide and conquer".

South Africa – while becoming free and democratic - all in all thus had a lot of crime and violence problems - along with remaining poverty among the masses - in the Early 1990s, when this book ends.

I can add that I also learned through this book about other important individuals in the struggle against Apartheid, such as Oliver Tambo, longtime and respected leader of the African National Congress (when the ANC was banned after 1964, he was in exile in Lusaka). Mandela had a deep love and respect for this long-time friend and companion Tambo, resulting in deep grief at his quite sudden death, after a stroke, in 1993. This was not long after Mandela’s release. “It’s like I myself died a little bit”, he writes emotionally, also in this final part of the book. I felt that.

Though these memoirs are about politics, they are thus certainly not “cold”.

The only mild critique I can give is that “culture” does get much less attention than politics (strategy, freedom fighter) in this book. The differences between Zulu, Xhosa, and Sotho among the native Africans, or among the Whites (English or Afrikaans speaking) get less attention.

I guess freedom fighters like Mandela cannot escape the Black-White dichotomy the Apartheid regime after all was based on – however nonsensical it is - , and that makes it understandable.

Overall a must – or politer: “recommendable” - read, one can learn a lot from.

FINAL REFLECTIONS

Though Amsterdam has a progressive image, the birthplace of Apartheid’s architect Hendrik Verwoerd – of who some say he “raped” South Africa – still has street names named after Boers/Afrikaners, recalling the British-Boer wars, and other parts of South Africa where the White Boers ruled and had wars. This was due to the historical Dutch-Afrikaner connection.

The Transvaal is such a part of South Africa, and the neighbourhood with those street names is in Eastern Amsterdam therefore called “the Transvaalbuurt”, and before as “Afrikanerbuurt”. Maybe by today’s standards morally dubious and politically incorrect, but some streets have since been renamed after Black African freedom fighters: there is a Steve Bikoplein – plein is Dutch for “square” - there (which replaced the name Pretoriusplein), in that same part of Amsterdam, and an Albert Luthulistraat, however alongside several street names named after prominent Boers/Afrikaners, like Kruger. Besides this also more neutral South African geographical references, often related to Boer wars. No, like I said, not really politically correct in these times.

Amsterdam is hardly alone in this, of course, with streets named after colonial figures in several European countries, and slaveowners on dollar bills in the US, or seeing the large monument to Columbus in a city like Barcelona (and his birthplace Genua, Italy), and many other statues of colonial “conquerors” in Spain, Portugal, Britain, and elsewhere. Not politically correct, and meeting occasional objections, but often still remaining.

Interestingly – and symbolically -, there later came a Nelson Mandelaplein (square) in Amsterdam, but more to the South East: significantly a quarter with a majority of people of African descent (mainly Creoles from the former Dutch colony Suriname, and communities of Ghanaians and Nigerians).

I think, however, that these memoirs show that Nelson Mandela was a moral model for all people, of whatever race, believing genuinely in equality, of all races, but also between sexes. As an example: his breaking up with Winnie Mandela in the final part of the book, he worded in respectful terms toward her.

Above all: his wisdom and strategic, in essence positive and humanitarian, approach remains truly exemplary for all freedom fighters. This book showed that.

“Long walk to freedom: the autobiography of Nelson Mandela” (Abacus, 1994). – 768 p. – ill.

Personal knowledge trajectory regarding Haile Selassie

“Afgeschreven” is a Dutch word, which can be translated to English as “written off”. There are other translations possible as well: it can mean something like “discharged” or “laid off”.

I saw that word, Afgeschreven, written on some books I have at home. I remember I bought these books years ago, when public libraries in the Netherlands (where I live) happened to have cheap sales of such “discharged” books. All these books had a small sticker on the cover with Afgeschreven (added was “bibliotheekboek” which means: library book) on them, and Afgeschreven was also stamped on the first page.

What does this mean? Is it a quality evaluation?.. Were all these books on sale I browsed through (there often were hundreds) written off and removed from the library collection because they were crap, nonsense, perhaps incorrect or outdated? Damaged perhaps, with excessive “comments” or underlinings in them by readers? Pages cut/torn out even? Would they sell them if they were that damaged? Browsing through them, I found that there were quite some interesting books between them, even by known authors. Of some I could imagine an outdatedness – often dealing with technology, or changed geography. Think for instance about books on the former Yugoslavia. This territory is divided now in separate countries, following a bloody war. That does not mean that books called “country reports” on Yugoslavia were inaccurate in describing the history, the landscapes, ethnicities and languages, the cultures.. Politics (borders are political) is the main thing that changed, not other aspects like culture or flora and fauna.

It might also mean that the books were borrowed so little that there seemed no interest in them, or that thematic changes in library book selections were made for economic or political reasons. I am afraid that also cultural or ideological biases or choices can play a part in this. Thus, some books were removed from the collection. That is unfortunate, and mostly unjust, but commonly affecting library collections when under volatile economic or budgeting constraints: choices have to be made at the cost of some public groups; not everything can be acquired or kept as part of the collection (hence: afgeschreven/discharged).

QUALITY?

A quality evaluation of books – beyond outdatedness - in a public library does not seem a reasonable explanation for books becoming Afgeschreven (written off): they must have been bought by the library in the first place once, hopefully as what then seemed sound decisions. Nonsensical, incorrect, or ideologically driven or propaganda works, were – ideally, at least - selected out and dropped (or never made it to) “the books to buy” list for the collection. Like the chaff it was removed, before ever entering the library collection. This selection process is of course furthermore (again: ideally) in line with the type of library and its public groups.

To go back, I bought some of these Afgeschreven books: I don’t remember the date(s) but I think I bought these in my later teens or early twenties, I imagine. So over 15 years ago, at least. Then I was in the bookworm mode: I was on a (long) “bookworm” tip, you might say. I must have been interested in reggae and Rastafari already, because one of the books is a short biography on Haile Selassie – the Emperor of Ethiopia – written in Dutch, published in 1993, the other one a “country report” of Ethiopia (and Eritrea), also in Dutch, and published in 1994. I remember I borrowed many books on African countries as a member of the public library around that period too. Both the mentioned “Afgeschreven” books I bought for about a guilder at the time (less than half a euro today). What’s more, I found them to be very educational and broadening. These books were in that sense not at all “afgeschreven” to me, but valuable.

Speaking about valuable. I considered it also valuable for me to know still more about Haile Selassie and Ethiopia. That goal has remained in my mind since before I bought those Afgeschreven books: namely when I became interested in reggae, including the lyrics, and Rastafari. This started when I was about 11 years old, I imagine. Reggae lyrics were my first reference to Haile Selassie, and, after that, books about Ethiopia in the public library, wherein Selassie was discussed in a broader context. In educational, “popular academic” books, for different age groups. This was all before the rise of the Internet, by the way, so these books I still have remind me of that “pre-Internet” period as well.

AUTOBIOGRAPHY

Much more recently I finished reading ‘The autobiography of Emperor Haile Selassie I : 1892-1937’. These are the translated memoirs of Haile Selassie, which he wrote in 1937 when exiled in England - in the town Bath to be precise – and which were not published until 1972/73. I will come back to this Autobiography later on.

KNOWLEDGE TRAJECTORY

What is, I think, interesting from a didactical perspective, is my trajectory of knowledge and information gathering regarding Haile Selassie. Since around I was 11 years of age, I listened to reggae lyrics, then I read library books for children, later books for adults on Africa, Ethiopia, Haile Selassie, and Rastafari..

ETHIOPIAN CONTEXT

The book on Ethiopia was not the only book I read on Ethiopia. I would read several smaller and larger books on Ethiopia, that were of course partly on Selassie’s reign as well. This taught me about the complex, feudal, and hierarchical society that Ethiopia was, about the limited connections between towns and country, the Orthodox Ethiopian Christian religion and its dominant role, as well as the central role of the Amhara people and about other ethnic groups and religions. I got to know about traditional structures and customs ingrained in Ethiopian society, and about the very ancient (Christian) Solomonic dynasty, the long time of maintained independence, the highlands and more..

In hindsight, it was useful that I read more about Ethiopia as a whole, before reading more about Haile Selassie. It helped me to put his reign and his actions in the proper context from the start. Ethiopia’s feudal culture and society help explain how Selassie had limited ways to manoeuvre, even if he aimed at changing things for the better: ending poverty, illiteracy, remnants of slavery and more, which he sincerely seemed to aim and intend. For this reason his approach for Ethiopia’s progress was steadfast, thought out, but often “gradual”. These difficult hierarchies and sovereignties with little state/national influence, especially also in rural areas, limited or determined often as much what could change as Selassie’s own goals, plans – even when put in practice - or his determination.

I remained a member of the public library in the course of my life, though my bookworm mode became in time less intense. This partly relates to life choices: I moved the focus to experiencing first-hand, and actually socializing with people.

In another way I was influenced by the Internet, that has become more important, also in my life. I can recall that looking on the Internet became a daily thing for me (with varying intensity) since I was about 22 years of age, when I started to study (Library and Documentation) and had Internet available at school, and later at home. Internet became more commonly checked by me since about the year 1996 (a bit later than Dutch youths of the same age from wealthier/middle-class families). Whether I wanted to or not – or even realized it – I in time began to approach “information” and “facts” differently because of the Internet and searching information on it. It became more technical, rational, and fragmented. A well-told history in a physical book that I enjoyed in library books I borrowed a decade earlier began to seem something of the past, though not entirely. Facts still need contextualization, so “texts” have remained important, also on the Web. Not all is fragmented. Take for instance the often long Wikipedia articles, especially on the Wikipedia in English. Besides this, of course, books and journals are still published.

Also on the Internet, I began searching for what had remained my interests: reggae and Rastafari. I got more interested in Marcus Garvey as well. I was interested in Africa and Ethiopia, also in topical events. The study and other aspects placed these interests of mine sometimes at the background, but never too long.

Apart from the “information media” (books, articles, Internet, tv, or video/DVD), what in the end is more interesting to me is the information itself. In that regard it is interesting that Selassie’s own writings followed in my case on what (mostly Western or European) historians wrote about Selassie. Following the reverence and “positive importance” Selassie has for Rastafari-inspired reggae artists – many of whom considered Selassie as God - , I also noticed critical comments in other sources, that often somehow seemed dubious. Not that I did not want to hear or read that, simply because I chose to “side” with the positive opinions of the reggae singers I liked. This might seem plausible to amateur-psychologists, but is in reality too simple an explanation. Writings about Selassie by different Western historians contradicted each other, I noticed, sometimes because of political ideology or other biases, sometimes because interpretation of complex issues differ easily from person to person. Ethiopia was indeed complex, as were Ethiopia’s traditions, politics, monarchical culture and history, and social reality. In all this Selassie had to find a way, as said explaining and shaping his actions.

SERGE VAN DUIJNHOVEN’S BIOGRAPHY

Serge van Duijnhoven, an historian as well as poet from the Netherlands, wrote the small “afgeschreven” biography (mini-biography) I bought on Haile Selassie, published in 1993. To Van Duijnhoven’s credit: his portrayal of Haile Selassie is not too negative and relatively neutral and balanced. It seems even understanding with regard to Selassie’s choices, even when other criticized these. Van Duijnhoven seems to put in context the complexity of the country Ethiopia and the Emperor. He was mainly factual, strove to balance (which is good), but not always got all his facts right, though mostly regarding less relevant details. Not overly relevant, perhaps, but odd mistakes there were: he describes Jamaican thinker and leader Marcus Garvey – who predicted Selassie’s coronation - as “Reverend” (analogy with Martin Luther King?). Garvey never was a Reverend. He wasn’t even formally Protestant anymore in the latter part of his life (he became Catholic), but never belonged to any clergy. He was the leader of a social Black Power or upliftment movement, not a primarily religious one. Van Duijnhoven does describe the general tenets of Rastafari well, on the other hand.

Still, if he got some facts clearly wrong, you don’t know what to believe anymore. Selassie became in his latter years more focussed on health issues – Van Duijnhoven relates – and had Indian advisors for his mental and physical health, as well as a Swedish “holistic” advisor. Selassie wanted to see his staff in the palace dance daily to “modern rhythmic” music for health reasons, Van Duijnhoven also relates as illustrative detail. This is not really a disturbing detail, and even sympathetic or funny in some way, but how did Van Duijnhoven find this out? However: maybe it is simply true, and he had reliable sources.

Other books - or journal or newspaper reports and articles - were more critical, and overall an image was presented of an authoritarian, absolutist Monarch in the vein of The Bourbon Monarchy (Louis XIV) as existed in France, centuries ago. An Emperor who aimed to keep absolute power, and even neglected the ply and problems (poverty, inequality, slavery) of his people. While Selassie in reality aimed at solving these problems as well as at modernization in several ways (legally, technologically) – influenced in part by the Western world and Europeans -, some historians still claim that Selassie’s efforts had little effect, and that he actually kept Ethiopia backwards. Several authors, however, also note more positively that Selassie made quite some progress, such as in modernization and education, in Ethiopia, despite difficult circumstances. In addition, several authors place Selassie in the broader historical context, pointing out with arguments that the following dictatorship under Mengistu was worse in several ways. Indeed there are strong arguments for that.

Marcus Garvey might have “predicted” the coronation of an African king that would mean the redemption of Black People worldwide (Rastafari-adherents see Selassie’s later coronation as the fulfilment of this prophecy), and was praiseworthy of the Emperor when crowned in 1930 and some time after it, but he became critical later. When Fascist Italy under Mussolini invaded Ethiopia in 1936, Garvey became irritated by the support Selassie sought, against the invasion, of mainly European, Western powers – “who would let him down, eventually”, Garvey warned - while neglecting broader African connections within his own continent or with Black people worldwide against the Fascist invasion. He attributed this to his elitist position in Ethiopia, detached from the large populace, and used to riches, privileges and servants.

KAPUSCINSKI’S BIOGRAPHY

Then there is the still most famous book on Haile Selassie: ‘The Emperor, downfall of an autocrat’, by Ryszard Kapuscinski. This was published in 1978. This work is on Selassie’s monarchic rule and habits, and sold well. However, the veracity of all facts in this book – including even relevant facts – has been meanwhile questioned by many. Not just by Selassie-adherents, by the way. Kapuscinski was known to “invent” or “make up” facts in his journalistic or historical writings, often as part of allegories, for political purposes in, for instance, his native Poland. In the said book on Selassie, Selassie’s rule was in this sense compared to Edward Gierek’s, First Secretary of the Polish Communist Party, until he fell in disgrace in 1980. If this comparison really made sense is already doubtful, but Kapuscinski’s historical methods have been criticized overall as “unscholarly” and biased, including – as said – made up (or unverified) facts.

See this review:

http://www.nytimes.com/1983/05/29/books/the-dictator-s-downfall.html

In a quite recent article (January 31, 2013) in the Dutch weekly journal Vrij Nederland, Harm Ede Botje calls Kapuscinski a “fantast”. He furthermore worked for the Polish secret services, making him a fanatic, practising Communist, and which explains his “propagandistic” journalism. That Selassie was ousted by Communists in 1974 for instance had to do with the negative image of Selassie that partly comes through in Kapuscinski’s 1978 work on Selassie.

Kapuscinski was seen as good (literary) writer, a poet, as well as a journalist, but when a book is presented as “nonfiction” and historical, one may assume that the facts in it are correct. Artistic licence is okay, so are literary aspirations, but this is just lying and deception.

http://content.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1972048,00.html

Van Duijnhoven’s small biography I mentioned before was read (or sold) much less than the bestseller (deemed classic now) by Kapuscinski. Van Duijnhoven’s “mini-biografie” has not been even translated into other languages than Dutch, so the market remained limited. Even Dutch public libraries “wrote” the book “off”, as I told. Serge Van Duijnhoven (who is also a poet) is also practically unknown outside of the Netherlands. Yet, his work on Selassie seemed more neutral and “real” to me. Not extremely academic in tone, but a good read, (seemingly) factual, and educational for young and older people.

Other more neutral biographies of Haile Selassie may have appeared in other countries and languages as well, but Kapuscinski is the more known as an author and journalist, even if his bias has become more evident recently.

LOCKOT’S WORK

Another biographical work on Haile Selassie cannot go unmentioned: the very readable ‘The mission : the life, reign and character of Haile Selassie I’ by Hans Wilhem Lockot, published in 1989. It is overall a quite sympathetic and positive description of Selassie as a person and of his reign. Lockot describes Selassie’s political and social talent as outstanding, for instance, and also points at actual progress achieved in Ethiopia toward modernization and education under Selassie’s guidance. He characterizes the accusation that the Emperor “hid” the drought and famine in Wollo province of Ethiopia from the world as fabrications, inventions by his enemies: Lockot points out that many foreign journalists worked freely in Ethiopia before and during the famine. Also, that Selassie supposedly had a lot of money (billions according to some German journalists) hidden abroad in a Swiss bank account, had “not a shred of truth”, Lockot points out, as all the extra money was needed for Ethiopian developments and policies.

Overall Lockot’s work, rather than unreasonably laudatory or apologetic, seems upon closer reading a balanced portrayal to me, making it more convincing. Much information recurred that I already have read before in other works on Selassie, but details in it were new for me.

SUBTEXTS

Different writers – outsiders/non-Ethiopians in most cases – partly repeat the same general events surrounding Selassie, but with individual differences between them, especially in the details. Hans-Wilhem Lockot, a German, lived and worked in Ethiopia as head of the research division of Ethiopia’s National Library. He really loves Ethiopia, coming across also in his other writings. In this particular work on Selassie, Lockot furthermore admits that he aims at a positive reassessment of Selassie, after negative comments about Selassie following the revolution in 1974, led by Mengistu, overthrowing the Emperor. He brought this overthrow onto himself, seemed to be a subtextual meaning about the Empreror’s rule in several commentaries.

Subtexts – or in other words “reading between the lines” – is what I do with all these books on Selassie. Biases can be hidden, to differing degrees, as we saw with Kapuscinski’s “biography”. Yet, also with more seemingly “neutral” or “impartial” works a degree of intellectual mistrust seems healthy to me. European countries Britain, France, Germany, and Belgium also had violent, oppressive colonial pasts in parts of Africa. The seeming respect granted by e.g. the British government and state to Haile Selassie, including wartime assistance, and Ethiopia’s independence, was perhaps helpful, but at the same time hypocritical as Britain denied self-rule in other African countries it colonized. This smells like the proven imperialistic method of “divide and rule”. Many articles, reports, or books on Selassie are by Britons (and other Europeans).

DOCUMENTARY FILMS

Then I saw a few good documentaries, some on DVD (and before that video) , that I considered quite educational for me: on Ethiopia and Haile Selassie’s rule. These include a British-made one, a seemingly neutral one, called ‘H.I.M. Haile Selassie, the Lion of Judah’ (http://youtu.be/75GQ3rwxtZI) - worth a watch I think.

Another, more recent one, spoken mainly in Amharic, I saw as part of a film festival, and I discussed in another post (December, 2011) on this blog: the documentary is called ‘Twilight revelations : episodes in the life and times of Emperor Haile Selassie’, is from 2009. It is based on interviews with Ethiopian people who worked closely with Selassie. To quote myself from that post: “This documentary gave a balanced, and overall positive (and human) view of Selassie as person and Emperor”.

I found the documentary of ‘Faces of Africa’ called ‘Haile Selassie: the pillar of Ethiopia, part 1 & 2’ interesting as well. See: http://youtu.be/bVki9t3anJU

Several interesting documentaries can furthermore be found on YouTube. This one, called ‘Ethiopia : the hidden empire’ is another interesting example: http://youtu.be/ZbyJyp2rQdE

I watched several of them, also on YouTube, encountering partly information I already learned about through other media and books, though with some added knowledge, and of course - the main advantage of films – visualization, images. Images can on the other hand also be manipulated and confusing, so I try to remain aware of that as well. Just like a main advantage of Internet, over other media: namely that you can search very specifically for information yourself, can also turn out to be confusing, and is also manipulated (by commercial parties, hackers, or virus spreaders).

RETURNING TO THE AUTOBIOGRAPHY

Like I mentioned, later than most other works on Selassie I mentioned, I also finished reading recently the Autobiography written by Haile Selassie I, called ‘The autobiography of Emperor Haile Selassie I : 1892-1937’. He wrote this in 1937. ‘Autobiography’ is a somewhat confusing term, because it mostly consists of memoirs from the perspective of a political leader. The actual title Selassie gave himself to the memoirs makes this clearer: ‘My life and Ethiopia’s Progress’. In other words, his life at the service of Ethiopian progress.

You won’t find too much personal or intimate revelations by Selassie beyond political, practical, or work-related issues, and rarely does he refer to his daily life or personal relationships or even feelings. The tone may even seem overly formal – because of this scope as an Emperor in function - while other linguistic formulations relate – according to the translator (Selassie wrote the memoirs in Amharic) – to the inherent social values present within Amharic, culturally different from the English to which it is translated. Hierarchy is also considered within Amharic’s linguistic formulations, as are politeness, traditions, social relations etcetera, rendering an inherent “opacity” to Amharic, difficult to translate to English.

It seemed, however, translated well in my opinion, and I consider it readable, though some formulations needed some getting accustomed to. Likewise did the practical and formal focus of Selassie’s descriptions require some adjustment from my part, but I could adjust and actually began to enjoy reading even the detailed descriptions. Perhaps the down-to-earth and practical focus corresponded with a “meditative vibe” within me.

It appealed, I think, also to shared human psychology. In past periods during my life, when I was sad or felt wronged by people, focussing on mundane/earthly, practical issues like hand and foot work, cleaning, repairing, putting in order, gardening, helped me to forget – at least temporarily - the hard “big” world of hatred, selfishness, power play, or tricky human encounters where you do not know friends from your foes. Maybe the suggestion of “keeping it simple and basic” or even “starting over again from from scratch” helps puts the mind at ease and focussed. Something of this mental, meditative “escape” I seem to find in Selassie’s descriptions and focus in the memoirs.

BATH

Selassie wrote these memoirs in 1937 while in exile in Bath, England (Somerset), after the Italians invaded and conquered Ethiopia in 1936. He stayed in Bath between 1936 and 1941. He read many international daily newspapers in that period, as Lockot’s relates in his work.

I have been to Bath in 2011, when visiting surrounding areas and nearby Bristol (I actually stayed in Bristol for some days, and visited Bath one full day from there). Bath was a well-preserved historical Georgian town, tourist guides explained. I also hoped to find the place where Selassie stayed during his period in exile. Just to get an idea of the surroundings where Selassie passed his days in exile.

Photo above: view of (central) Bath. I took this photo in 2011.

Bath was (and largely still is) a wealthy, stately town, with Georgian architecture, though with some “cosy” parts, and even some seemingly “rougher” parts, though it came across mainly as a wealthy, “middle-class” town. The large house/villa where Selassie stayed was called Fairfield House, served as his residence, and was in an outer, green part of Bath called Newbridge, close to several smaller and larger parks. Perhaps ironically the architecture of this villa was of the so-called “Italianate” style.

I walked through Newbridge and got an idea (with all the other knowledge I gathered about Selassie by then in my head) of how it must have been for Haile Selassie to have to leave Ethiopia to come to these Northern European, British surroundings.

Photo above: street in Newbridge, Bath. I took this photo in 2011.

The “Autobiography” covers up to 1937. The Ethiopian-Italian conflict as a foreplay of World War II – i.e. Fascist Italy’s invasion of Ethiopia in 1936, and what lead up to it - are important topics in especially the latter part of the Autobiography, which is understandable, as he wrote this in exile soon after Italy’s invasion.

I became later in the work adjusted to the practical, formal focus of Selassie, but actually found it pleasing and educational as well. Thinking it through, I think it reflects some type of humility, of being dignified while realistic. Even when criticizing what he saw as wrong or evil actions by his enemies within Ethiopia, or the Italian wickedness, political tricks, and violence, the lack of support from the international community at times for Ethiopia, Selassie’s tone is critical but not very emotional or spiteful. Dignified, you might say. In these memoirs, Selassie certainly also recurringly makes broader (higher or deeper) philosophical and religious (Christian) references, which show his worldview and beliefs. There is quite some wisdom here and there in the Autobiography as well, alternating at times the practical elaborations on economics, agriculture, infrastructure, organization, trade, military actions etcetera with deeper (or “higher”, if you will) philosophical and social insights.

This combination of philosophy, practical development, and politics – furthermore written in a historically significant year, 1937 – helps make this Autobiography an insightful read.

BALANCE

In addition, and going back to my “knowledge trajectory” regarding Haile Selassie, it seems an interesting coincidence that Selassie’s own writings on his life and work followed, in my case, after I read, heard and saw so much about what other people said about Selassie. Opinions ranging from positive about Selassie to negative/disparaging, and from “praising” reggae lyrics, biased or less-biased commentators or biographical information from Western and European scholars/historians, of journalists, to opinions by other Ethiopians and Africans.

I find that you can be inspired and taught by life stories of people, especially when they were innovative or influential. When they had odds to overcome and aimed for the positive. I had this with the life story/biography of Marcus Garvey, even to a degree Bob Marley or Peter Tosh, Martin Luther King, Malcolm X, or, for that matter, people like Pablo Picasso, James Brown, Kemal Ataturk, William Pitt, Charles de Gaulle, Toussaint Louverture, Andy Warhol, Oscar Wilde etcetera. Artists as well as political and social leaders. These are often also “positive examples” for one’s own life. I really experience that this way.

Yet, even biographies of people with “dubious” sides like Napoleon Bonaparte, Muamar Khadaffi, or Stalin can be instructive, as of people who are not commonly known as really good or bad. Also the life story of (they say) a distant relative of mine, Manuel Godoy, prime minister in Spain around 1800, inspired me somehow. Such biographies give insight in personalities, the mere humanity of them when they made choices, and we all share that humanity, making the stories imaginable, even when dealing with other times and conditions.

I am interested in biographies/life stories, but also in autobiographies and memoirs: because then the person talks about himself “in his own words”. I think it’s good for balance: to put these own writings alongside what others say. My distant relative Manuel Godoy was a political leader in Spain, around 1800. There were many (positive and negative) comments about him then and later: he was what you call “controversial”. See the Wikipedia article on him, for instance. Godoy’s own memoirs, written later in his life after he was removed from power following popular uproar and was living in Paris, France, were – not unlike the discussed Selassie’s memoirs – more on his political role and with little attention to his personal and intimate affairs. Still interesting to read, I imagine even if he was not (as I heard all my life) somewhere in earlier branches of our family tree. Indeed he was from the same part of the province Badajoz, as most of my Spanish family (my mother’s side), and that surname Godoy was one of the two carried by my grandmother (in Spanish custom people have two official surnames, as readers may know).

CONCLUSION

In conclusion, a lesson I learned from all this, is that you must not neglect what the person him- or herself has to say about him-/herself and his/her life, even if many other people feel the need to comment on or describe him/her from the outside. Every human being needs to be given attention, listened to, and not just talked about. That’s my idea of a better world. Even when disagreeing with or not really understanding someone.

While many Rastafari adherents admit that Haile Selassie (re)connects them to an (ancestral) African history and identity, making him (Selassie also as symbol) important for the Africa-focussed redemptive movement that is Rastafari, quite other people writing or commenting on Selassie have also their own agenda, quite to the opposite of the Rastafari movement. One of these agenda’s was separating, through given honours and welcomes, the Christian monarch Selassie, the ancient dynasty and monarchy and extensive cultural heritage found in Ethiopia - and Ethiopia’s independence – from the rest of supposedly more “savage” Africa, as the British and French and others did as part of a colonial “divide and conquer” game.

Selassie corrected this himself with his leading role in organizing African unity and the Organization of African Unity (headquartered in Addis Ababa, since its foundation in 1963) since the 1950s and 1960.

On also a more cultural and spiritual level, the Rastafari movement also “reinscribed” Selassie within and as part of Africa, as of course he and Ethiopia always were.

One may or may not share the actual “spiritual” belief that Selassie is God (called Jah by Rastas), or more specifically the reincarnation of Christ as God returned to redeem Africans – as some Rastas believe –, or at least that (as many Rastas argue) Selassie is the divine Jah, still living because everliving, redeeming Africans (all Black people) now and in the future. People who find such beliefs irrational would be less hypocritical if they applied the same rationalist scrutiny to powerful world religions as Christianity or Islam (or Hinduism, Buddhism etcetera). People have the right to choose their own spirituality.

In any case, apart from personal beliefs one may have, the redemptive function of Selassie for Rastafari adherents, Africans, Black people - and perhaps even for poor developing countries in general - is real and proven. As also from other life stories, besides this I think all human beings globally can learn something from Selassie’s life.

This is, I think and conclude, largely due to the overall intelligent way in which Selassie ruled Ethiopia and protected its and later Africa’s interests, as most writings I mentioned above showed in different ways. Despite difficult conditions, and conservative traditions to be considered, Selassie maintained dignity, and achieved progress in Ethiopia in several ways, wherever possible at least, and also for African unity. Moreover, in the international arena he took an early stand against Fascism, against racism, and colonialism, in other words: in favour of international equality and solidarity. All this adds up to a positive example.

SHORT POSTSCRIPT

My “knowledge trajectory” is by the way not over (it never is.. as I live I keep learning): there is a Volume II to the Autobiography by Selassie I discussed, Volume II dealing with a later period of Selassie’s life and rule, also in his own words.. I have to find this to read it as well..