Dear Dr. Abel,

I write to you from Sweden. We, some of the members from an online forum called the 'Itallist', hereby give our reactions to your article.

First, we want to say how proud we are of the younger ones that choose to take their first conscious steps trodding forward on Jah road. Rasta faith and truth about life is attracting young people and that is something very blessed, something we thank Jah for.

However, we feel offended about how this article fails to deal with the realities surrounding the adolescents and instead, insensitively accuses Rastafari as being the culprit. It is written from an angle blinded by the common mainstream ways as normative without questioning the society's prejudice of Rasta. Unfortunately, people will easily accept these half truths and misinformation because the scribe has the credentials to validate these falsehoods into facts.

Definitely, this article is not talking about Rastafari as a discipline, but something different which you (and possibly many with you) consider to be Rastafari. The article has oversimplified, complicated and distorted the issue, all at once. You were supposed to broaden the scope and perhaps in this way, the antisocial, unbecoming behaviour coming from elements, sometimes posing as Rastafari, could have been tackled, not attack the entire movement that is, if your intentions were honest and not simply to ridicule.

Unfair and bad

Rastafari is a movement from down to up, and because of this we did not really have the honest chance to gather up and define ourselves before we got written about and documented by non-Rastas who, from way back in history, have taken it upon themselves to behave as if they have preferential rights to interpret whatever phenomena they come across. Whatever opinions these self-appointed authorities come up with, are conveyed to the masses as gospel truth and the consumers take it at face value.

We want to make it clear that Rastas reacting against unfairness and badness does not mean Rastas are entirely and exclusively political or a revolutionary sect that exists merely to oppose and contemptuously criticise the establishment. This is one of the things many people tend to get all wrong.

Therefore, to explain that the adolescents choose to become Rastafari mainly as a 'teenage revolt against the system and its good values', is an unfair, false assertion against the Rastafari philosophy. This demeaning assumption to the movement does not help any of the anxious teenage parents.

The problem which is truly dangerous and destructive is that as people get 'educated' in psychology and sociology, etc., they seem to get programmed to believe that all the answers are found inside 'that little box'. The importance of having experts and thinkers like you discuss and share your expertise on issues that affect the society can never be overemphasised. However, this should be done in a manner that shows respect for other people's faith.

If being grown up means to be insensitive and inhumane in the name of conforming with western social norms, then it is better to be Jah children.

Blessed love,

Thina Machepe,

Ras Charles and

Chimwemwe Luwani.

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