African king tours Boston homeless shelter

(Dominic Chavez)

The king is greeted warmly by shelter director Reilly.

By Brian Ballou, Globe Staff

A homeless shelter for women in Boston had an unusual visitor today: an African king.

King Kpoto-Zounme Hakpon III of the Republic of Benin is nearing the end of a two-week trip to the United States, the first ever for a king from his country.

As he stepped out of the rain and into the basement of the Women's Lunch Place on Newbury Street, about 60 women gathered around him and applauded.

Hakpon was resplendent in a flowing, full-length leopard-print robe and gold accoutrements, including his cane-like "staff of office," which was handed to him when he became king in 1997.

The executive director of the shelter, Sharon Reilly, had talked with Hakpon at a private reception earlier in the trip and invited him to the facility.

Hakpon traveled to Boston to offer an apology for his ancestors' role in the transatlantic slave trade. He also said through an interpreter, "I came here so that the people of African descent can reconnect our lines and heritage, to reconstruct the homeland."

"The women here are honored to have the king visit. He gives a different level of importance to the poor and homeless here in Boston," said Reilly.

Benin is now a multiparty democracy. But kings still receive widespread public recognition as cultural icons.

Benin is a French-speaking country in West Africa with a population of more than 8.2 million citizens, with an area slightly smaller than Pennsylvania. The capital city is Porto Novo, which was founded in the 16th century by King Te-Agbanlin, one of Hakpon's ancestors.

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