Call from a king
African icon visits women's homeless shelter on US trip to restore ties
Lunchtime conversations in this basement usually revolve around the day-to-day plight of the homeless women who come for shelter and sustenance. Yesterday, they took on a royal hue.
The Women's Lunch Place on Newbury Street hosted an African king who had just met with the governor and lawmakers at the State House.
As King Kpoto-Zounme Hakpon III stepped out of the drenching rain and into the basement of the day shelter for homeless women, about 60 women surrounded him and applauded.
The king - resplendent in a flowing, full-length leopard-print robe and gold accoutrements, including his cane-like Staff of Office, presented to him when he became king in 1997 - flashed a smile that stretched the tribal scars on his dark brown cheeks.
Through an interpreter, the French-speaking Hakpon said his visit marked the first time a king from the Republic of Benin has visited the United States.
Kings are no longer official monarchs of the country, but they still receive widespread public recognition as cultural icons.
While Hakpon said homelessness and poverty are problems among the people in his West African country of 8 million, the main reason for his visit was to apologize for his ancestor's role in the trans-Atlantic slave trade.
Hakpon is a direct descendant of King Te-Agbanlin, who in the 16th century founded Porto-Novo, the city that became the capital of the Republic of Benin. Hakpon acknowledged yesterday that his ancestors facilitated the slave trade. "I came here so that the people of African descent can reconnect our lines and heritage, to reconstruct the homeland," Hakpon said.
In addition to his appearance at the State House, Hakpon visited or plans to visit the University of Massachusetts at Boston, Wheelock and Bentley colleges, and the Haitian Multi-Purpose Center in Dorchester.
He arrived in Boston on April 17 and plans to return tomorrow to Benin. His visit was coordinated by Wheelock, UMass, Hope for Africa, and the center.
Sharon Reilly, executive director of the Women's Lunch Place, visited Benin in 2004 and met Bernard Adjibodou, who is one of the king's advisers and the African Director of Hope for Africa, a nongovernmental organization recognized by the United Nations.
At a private reception on Sunday, Reilly talked with Hakpon about the Women's Lunch Place, and he told her he would like to visit the shelter.
"The women here are honored to have the king visit," Reilly said. "He gives a different level of importance to the poor and homeless here in Boston."
Shortly after Hakpon entered the shelter and sat down, about 15 women approached him and took turns bowing. One woman asked him how many wives he had, but Hakpon declined to comment. Another woman said: "Love the outfit."
Hakpon talked about how women in his country work long hours making tablecloths and fishing and farming. Many women benefit from microloans to help them establish small businesses, he said.
At the end of his 40-minute visit, Hakpon asked for water. Given a bottle, he prayed for the souls of Africans sold into slavery and those who died in passage and fought for their freedom. He then poured a drop of water onto the basement floor, a practice called "pouring libations."
Guerda Fevrier, a 47-year-old woman from Haiti who has lived in the United States for a dozen years, was a tad flushed after the visit. "I've seen a lot of kings on television," she said, "but never have I seen one in person, so this was very special."
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