What's That sign?

The most obvious system of symbols I noticed was the physical signs that the villagers have placed around their village to remind people of the teachings of Rastafarianism. I noticed that the first sign preached equality and justice for all, while two others appeared to have different connotations.

 

The video said the sign above stood for “goodness over evil”. The sign clearly says black over white. I was at first unsure how to interpret this sign.

The next sign made it more clear where “the R of righteousness [is] over the X of wrong”.  I first noticed that the R was written in black paint over the X which was written in white paint.

 These signs made me wonder if they were a metaphor for an underlying symbol of racism in Rastafarianism. Two methods of interpreting these symbols came to mind. One could interpret them very literally and say that Rasta’s are in fact opposed to people with a white skin tone. This is supported in our text on page 76 when our book talks about a group who's motto was "death to white oppressors". But racism would contradict that everything the spiritual and happy tone that Rastafarian's are legendary for. I think that as babylon became less of a physical place, and Rasta's became less concerned with actually returning to africa hatred towards white people died out. Racism is preaching evil while these signs were said to be preaching “right over wrong”. I came to one conclusion, which was consistent with the book. Rasta’s reject white culture, but they don’t hate white people. “The Rasta is simply “creating a cultural identity that synchronizes with… their African past”. The signs illustrate how Rasta’s must reject white culture in order to return to their roots. Independence is the root symbol these signs are expressing, it is the overarching theme that connects these signs to Rastafarianism.

The symbol of independence can be seen also in how The Rasta sees him self as a spider who uses his wit to survive the traps that white culture has set. In the video they lived in the Jamaican mountains “the closest possible place to heaven”, symbolizing their independence from Babylon society. Intentionally or unintentionally they had no water in the village, which can also be seen as a way of rejecting modern culture and escaping Babylon.

These symbols such as the signs give Rasta’s the belief that they can control their surroundings, and Rasta’s are not merely imprisoned in Babylon. It give significance to their lives. While at first they appear to be racist it is merely a symbolic mode of interpreting what they see around them. Rasta’s were oppressed by white culture so they use the color white to symbolize oppression.