10 Who can find a virtuous woman? for her price is far above rubies.
11 The heart of her husband doth safely trust in her, so that he shall have no need of spoil.
Proverbs 31:10-31King James Version (KJV)
"no real man can live without her".
Garvey's writing, the Universal Negro Improvement Association stating about women
1930 she wear the crown of Empress
She is the highest, the best, the greatest goddess
~History Man: Empress Menen
The imagination of the world, not just that of Africa, has been haunted by the great women of the continent. African Goddesses and Queens have been a prominent feature of European mythology and African reality. And it is from this rich ancestory and lineage which Our Empress descends. The vine that brought forth Goddesses like Andromeda, Isis, Maat, Inanna... Queens such as the Nyahbinghi, Nefertiti, Nefertari, the Candaces, Cleopatra and the Queen of Sheba. She is wrought from an iconic class of women, women who have shaped the course of civilization, in a continent not fastened to the system of Patriarchy that now dominates western civilization and culture.
Africa as a continent is unique in its disposition to women. Our traditions of female identity and feminity are unique in its reverence for the female deity and feminity. His Imperial Majesty maintains this tradition of revernce for the feminine energy and female aura. This is established and symbolized in his November 2, 1930, dual coronation. His Imperial Majesty Emperor Haile Selassie and Her Imperial Majesty Empress Menen were crowned at the Cathedral of St George in the capital of Ethiopia, Addis Abbaba.
In times like these, whenever the struggle for Black self-determination is discussed or examined, the spotlight is usually on the brave and heroic men who gave their lives for the betterment of their people. However little attention is paid to the women who also played a vital role in this struggle. The Black woman's role in the struggle for freedom and equality cannot be overstated or re-iterated enough. Every great man in history has come into the world through the womb of a woman, and historically the Black woman has been a pillar of strength throughout Africa and the Diaspora. Without looking at the contributions made by Black women throughout the ages, the full story of the Black experience and struggle cannot be told. While there are countless Black women worthy of having their stories told, this article focuses on the life and works of the last Queen of Queens of Ethiopia, Empress Woizero Menen.
As we rescue ourselves, the parts of us as a people lost to history, so too myst we resurrect the Black Woman and Black Goddesses from antiquity. The rich, complex and challenging life of Empress Menen has remained obscure for decades. We must once again become reacquainted with the life of the Empress and her great contribution to her faith, her country and her family. We must understand her as Woman in revolutionary times, playing exceptional roles. Her virtue is not tied to immaculate conception, virgin births or sexuality, her greatness is defined in the facts and acts that embodied her in her part of history, a royal figure coronated with her King, a woman given exceptional esteem, in a western world dominated by the ancient system of Patriarchy. Where man's rule is absolute and can have cruel consequence for the life carrying gender, a system that created a society of gender inequality, unfair wages based on gender and race. Put on a pedestal before the world, she never succombed to pride or vanity but held her post as Queen with serene grace.
We need to rescue these ideas of femininity in an age where anything goes, where gender roles and lines are blurred, when American notions of white feminism have perverted the notion of womanhood, created disdain for the home and childrearing.... issuing out a machine factory of career women, who believe in cosmopolitan and air-conditioning, than sweat and the idea of any muscle intense activity... creating an era of eros... a woman is today defined in the black community by her vagina. It is time we as a the Rastafari community divorce completely from European victorian notions of sex and sexuality, we must do away with the Christian Patriachy that killed the mother in the hily trinity and made her a Holy Ghost, it is time we divorced the Judeo-Abrahamic system of patriarchy, of Eve is evil and the afterthought of creation... We must restore Isis to her rightful place, as the Savior of Osiris her husband, to make her the Mother of Horus again, to let the Black Woman know herself as the Black Madonna, mother to the Black Bambino, it is time the Black community and in particular this generation see themselves as Empress Menen, Queen Omega and the lineage of Black Goddesses she personifies. It is time the Black Woman of today re-personifies herself as Queen Omega and Isis.
Virtuous wife
We as a people struggle with the definition of a virtuous woman as simply one who has never had sex. In divine theatre Empress Menen shatters this image, as she had previous marriages and borne children before the royal union. According to both published and unpublished reports, the then Woizero Menen Asfaw was first given in marriage by her family to the prominent Wollo nobleman, Dejazmach Ali of Cherecha at a very young age, as was the prevailing custom. She bore him two children, a daughter, Woizero Belaynesh Ali, and a son, Jantirar Asfaw Ali. This first marriage ended in divorce, and her natal family then arranged for Woizero Menen to marry Dejazmach Amede Ali Aba-Deyas, another very prominent nobleman of Wollo. She bore her second husband two children as well, a daughter, Woizero Desta Amede, and a son, Jantirar Gebregziabiher Amede. Following the sudden death of her second husband, Woizero Menen's grandfather, Negus Mikael arranged her marriage to Ras Leulseged Atnaf Seged, a prominent Shewan nobleman, who was considerably older than Woizero Menen in late 1909 or early 1910. It is unclear whether Woizero Menen was married to the aged nobleman (and secured a divorce shortly afterwards to marry her royal groom) or whether there was only an engagement between them which was broken without ado. She would later meet Dejazmach Tafari Makonnen (later the Emperor Haile Selassie). Isn't it interesting and unusal that the King in his divine wisdom saw fit an unconventional woman, with a history and lineage steeped in as much mystery as the King himself?
Hence we have an imperative to break the mold the colonial masters ha put on our minds, no longer must we conform to the colonial and judaic notions of womanhood, we must access a womanhood and femininity more ancient than that of our colonisers!
Role of a woman
Woman is here to complement man, she is our equal, even if nature has made her different in function, there are more differences between apples and oranges than between man and woman. Within the Rastafari context we must strive to affirm the inclusion and equality of the woman in Rastafari's Royalty. We must pursue the lead set by our Black King, for Empress Menen Asfaw, the Mother of the Ethiopian Nation, was a far-sighted woman well ahead of her time.
The Empress, a mother of ten, she balanced a stable family life ruled by her benevolent King and husband, she became his most trusted advisor in national and international affairs, and built up the confidence of millions of women by educating them and giving them opportunities to shine.
She established childcare centers and handicraft schools, as well as a School for Girls, the first of its kind to offer education to young women of Ethiopia. She visited the Holy Land four times and built a church and monastery on the banks of the Jordan River. Our Queen was active in promoting women's issues in Ethiopia, was Patroness of the Ethiopian Red Cross, and the Ethiopian Women's Charitable Organization. She was also patroness of the Jerusalem Society that arranged for pilgrimages to the Holy Land. She founded the Empress Menen School for Girls in Addis Ababa, the first all-girls school which had both boarding and day students. Girls from all over the Empire were brought to the school to receive a modern education, encouraged by the Empress who visited it often and presided over its graduation ceremonies. The Empress gave generously, as well as sponsored programs for the poor, ill and disabled. She truly was a devoutly religious woman who did much to support the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church. She built, renovated and endowed numerous churches in Ethiopia and in the Holy Land. Prominent among these are the St. Raguel Church in Addis Ababa's Merkato district, the Kidane Mehret (Our Lady Covenant of Mercy) Church on Mount Entoto, and the Holy Trinity Monastery on the banks of the River Jordan in the Holy Land. She gave generously from her personal funds towards the building of the new Cathedral of St. Mary of Zion at Axum, but did not live to see it completed and dedicated.
During the Italian Invasion of 1936-1941, she assumed the administrative responsibility of Ethiopia while the Emperor was on the battlefield. A woman of great faith, she was a member of the Ethiopian Orthodox Christian Church and constructed and upgraded many churches throughout her country. When the Empress was exiled from Ethiopia during the Italian occupation, she made a pledge to the Virgin Mary at the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem, promising to give her crown to the church if Ethiopia were liberated from occupation. The Empress made numerous pilgrimages to Holy Sites in then British-ruled Palestine, in Syria and in Lebanon, during her exile to pray for her occupied homeland. Following the return of Emperor Haile Selassie I and his family to Ethiopia in 1941, a replica of the crown was made for future Empresses, but the original crown that Empress Menen was crowned with at her husband's side in 1930 was sent to the Church of the Nativity inBethlehem. Empress Menen, although often seen wearing a tiara at public events that called for it, would never again wear a full crown.
Empress Menen performed perfectly in the role of Empress-consort. In her public role she fused religious piety, concern for social causes, and support for development schemes with the majesty of her Imperial status. Outwardly she was the dutiful wife, visiting schools, churches, exhibitions and model farms, attending public and state events at her husband's side or by herself. She took no public stand on political or policy issues. Behind the scenes however, she was the Emperor's most trusted advisor, quietly offering advice on a whole range of issues. She avoided the publicly political role that her predecessor as Empress-consort, Empress Taytu Betul, had taken, which had caused deep resentment in government circles during the reign of Menelik II.
The citizens of her nation knew Empress Menen for her kindness and humanitarian outreach.During her life she also experienced a great deal of sorrow and hardship, enduring the loss of seven of her ten children, five years as a refugee of war in exile, plus the everyday struggle of on-going health problems.
Hail Empress Menen
Because of her role in the education of women, work with the poor, commitment to her spiritual beliefs, and her quiet strength in the face of tribulation, Empress Menen has secured a place for herself in Ethiopian and World history as a powerful Black woman. In these times, where it seems to many that the Black woman's worth lies solely in her appearance, it is nice to know that there are Black women who challenge such popular misconceptions. Although Empress Menen was a powerful force in the empowerment of women in Ethiopia and world wide, she did not fit the stereotype of the modern day feminist. She stood for education and women pursuing the highest degree of education possible, yet always put her family first. She showed great strength through humility and never sought out the limelight, but preferred to let her words speak for her. Yet when it mattered, she raised her voice to speak out against injustices facing her people. Empress Menen was truly deserving of the title Queen of Queens, and although she left flesh, in 1965, she will always be remembered in the hearts of Africans, both at home and abroad. Empress Menen, we salute your greatness, Queen Omega, Mother of Creation.
I close with Haile Selassie's address to the Ethiopian nation on February 15, 1962. In his documented speech, he makes two profound statements about his wife... The first of these utterances was when he said, “During the memorable days of our companionship, we never had differences that needed the intervention of others.” The next thing was that he gave thanks “to the Almighty” for being blessed with a “long and uninterrupted union, which is not very common in the world today.”
