The History of SelassieFest

Ethiopian Regent Ras Tafari (the future Emperor Haile Selassie I) sends a four‑man “Abyssinian Mission” to Chicago and New York, establishing cultural and diplomatic ties with African American communities and promoting repatriation to Ethiopia. This mission plants the early seeds of Ethiopianism in Chicago.

Chicago becomes a hotbed of Ethiopianist and Pan‑African movements. Groups like the Star Order of Ethiopia organize, and individuals such as Grover Redding burn the American flag and raise Ethiopia’s red, gold, and green flag as a pledge of allegiance to Ras Tafari — an early symbolic break from Babylon and allegiance to African sovereignty.

Ras Tafari is crowned Emperor Haile Selassie I of Ethiopia on November 2. This event galvanizes the Rastafari movement in Jamaica, while Chicago’s Ethiopianist circles continue to champion African self‑determination. Black Chicagoan John C. Robinson later commands Haile Selassie’s air force during Italy’s invasion, embodying the direct link between Chicago and Ethiopia.

Emperor Haile Selassie I addresses the United Nations, delivering his timeless plea for racial equality: “Until the philosophy which holds one race superior and another inferior is finally and permanently discredited and abandoned, everywhere is war.” His words echo through Chicago’s freedom movements and Rastafari gatherings for decades.

The 18th annual Rastafarian Festival draws more than 10,000 people to Washington Park in Chicago, celebrating Selassie’s birthday with Nyabinghi drumming, reggae music, Ital food, and Pan‑African fellowship. This event becomes a direct forerunner of today’s SelassieFest.

SelassieFest continues the tradition, bringing together musicians, educators, elders, and youth for a day of music, reasoning, Ital cuisine, and heritage celebration. Rooted in the same spirit that animated Chicago’s early Ethiopianists, the festival stands as a living tribute to Haile Selassie I and a gathering place for the entire community.