When people think of Rastafari, the name that often comes to mind is Bob Marley. When they think of Emperor Haile Selassie, the name that comes to mind is usually Marcus Garvey. Yet, far too often, the name Leonard Percival Howell—the man widely recognised as the founder of the Rastafari Movement—is ignored.

It was Leonard Howell who introduced many Jamaicans to the divinity and significance of Emperor Haile Selassie I. It was Howell who boldly challenged colonial rule and taught black Jamaicans that King George was not their king. For speaking these truths, he faced persecution, imprisonment, and brutal treatment. He was charged with sedition and other treasonous offences, and had he been convicted on the most serious charges, he could have suffered the same fate as Paul Bogle and William Gordon.

Howell urged black people to reject the colonial interpretation of Christianity, which had been used to justify oppression, and instead embrace a spiritual identity rooted in African dignity, self-respect, and the teachings of Emperor Haile Selassie I. His message inspired a movement that grew from the hills of Jamaica into a worldwide cultural and spiritual force.