Tekla Alamaya

Tekla Alamaya is an Ethiopian diplomat who comes to Harlem as an envoy from the Ethiopian government. He works with the Harlem-based organization “Hands to Ethiopia” in order to rouse the citizens of Harlem in support of Ethiopia’s military defense against the Italian fascist forces attempting to invade and conquer Ethiopia. Alamaya holds a position of royal authority in Ethiopia. His position is similar to that of a prince, although his title is “Lij.”

Tekla Alamaya is depicted as rather disoriented among the social circles and customs of Harlem that he encounters on his diplomatic mission. Alamaya is relatively young and is rather inexperienced as a diplomat; he therefore discovers various circumstances in which he feels insufficiently capable of effectively pursuing his mission. He is also somewhat disoriented by the political idiosyncrasies in America, especially with regards to the many clashing schools of political thought vying...