Rhea Simmons sets up a table for her discussion about Kwanzaa at Alexander's Family Restaurant on Saturday. (Jason Plotkin - Daily Record/Sunday News)
Posted on 12/28/2014 6:14:26 PM PST by lightman
Kwanzaa's roots stretch from York to Africa
Kwanzaa's roots from York to Africa
By Rebecca Hanlon
For the Daily Record/Sunday News Updated: 12/28/2014 04:02:22 PM EST
Maulana Ron Karenga, a 1958 William Penn Senior High School graduate, created Kwanzaa in 1966 as a way for those of African descent to explore their culture and bring good into the world.
As an Afrocentric scholar, Karenga has said he hoped Kwanzaa would give people a deeper African-American consciousness and a sense of community within ancient African culture. The holiday kicked off Friday and will run through Jan. 1, with different celebrations and cultural traditions highlighted with each day.
These days, the tradition of Kwanzaa is celebrated in numerous ways. The annual Kwanzaa festival at Crispus Attucks in York not only embraces African cultures, but the many cultures fund in York, said Holly Gould,programs manager.
We need to come together for common needs in our community," Gould said. "Kwanzaa helps us remember that we have a responsibility to our community and to each other."
For those who want to adopt Kwanzaa traditions, it's easy to get started, Gould said. Here, we share some basic tips for how to start your own Kwanzaa celebration. Decorate with symbols
The symbols of Kwanzaa can be used as decorations throughout the home during the holiday. These items remind people of traditional African culture and heritage. Put a green tablecloth over a table and on top of that place the Mkeka, a straw or woven mat that symbolizes the historical foundation of African ancestry. Place the rest of the symbols on the Mkeka: Mazao (mah-ZAH-oh) are the fruits and vegetables of the harvest, symbolic of African harvest celebrations and of the rewards of productive and collective labor.
Kinara (kee-NAH-rah) is the candleholder with places for seven candles. This is symbolic of our roots, our parent people — continental Africans.
Muhindi (moo-HIN-dee) are the ears of dry corn, one for each child in the household. This is symbolic of our children and our future which they embody.
Mishumaa Saba (mee-shu-MAH SAH-bah) are the seven candles (one black, three red and three green),
symbolic of the Nguzo Saba, the Seven Principles, and the matrix and minimum set of values which African people are urged to live by in order to rescue and reconstruct their lives in their own image and according to their own needs.
Kikombe cha Umoja (kee-KOM-bay CHA OO-MOH-jah) is the unity cup, symbolic of the foundational principle and practice of unity which makes all else possible. It is used to pour a libation called tambiko in honor of the ancestors.
Zawadi (zah-WAH-dee) are the gifts parents give to their children — symbolic of the labor and love of parents and the commitments made and kept by the children. Gifts are given on the final night of Kwanzaa.
Kwanzaa flags, or Bendera, are posters that illustrate the seven principles of Kwanzaa. These posters can be purchased or made at home. Instructions for how to make your own Bendera can be found out www.crayola.com/crafts/kwanzaa-flag-craft/.
The feast of Kwanzaa, or Kwanzaa Karamu, is on New Year's Eve. During the feast, drinks are shared from one cup, the Kikombe cha Umoja. The cup is a symbol of unity and shared purpose — one of the greatest principles of the celebration. After the feast, gifts are exchanged. If you go
Crispus Attucks is holding an educational program about Kwanzaa at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday at Crispus Attucks York, 605 S. Duke St. The event is free to the public. It includes food and entertainment.
The Seven Principles
On the last day of Kwanzaa, which falls on New Year's Day, gifts are given. Most of the gifts are of a creative or artistic nature because of the meaning of Kuumba, which is creativity.
The Nguzo Saba (The Seven Principles of Kwanzaa)
One of the seven principles of Kwanzaa is recited each night of the celebration. A candle is lit on the Kinara as a symbol of the roots of tradition. The principles are:
Umoja (Unity) Dec. 26: To strive for and maintain unity in the family, community, nation and race.
Kujichagulia (Self-determination) Dec. 27: To define ourselves, name ourselves, create for ourselves and speak for ourselves.
Ujima (Collective Work and Responsibility) Dec. 28: To build and maintain our community together.
Ujamaa (Cooperative Economics) Dec. 29: To build and maintain our own stores, shops and other businesses and to profit from them together.
Nia (Purpose) Dec. 30: To make our collective vocation the building and developing of our community.
Kuumba (Creativity) Dec. 31: To do always as much as we can, in the way we can, in order to leave our community more beautiful.
Imani (Faith) Jan. 1: To believe with all our heart in our people, our parents, our teachers, our leaders and the righteousness and victory of our struggle. Practice Kwanzaa greetings
"Habari Gani" is an old Swahili greeting that means, "What is the news?" When someone is asked this question, they are to respond with the principle for that day.
Dec. 26: "Umoja" - Unity.
Dec. 27: "Kujichagulia" - Self-determination.
Dec. 28: "Ujima" - Collective work and responsibility.
Dec. 29: "Ujamaa" - Cooperative economics.
Dec. 30: "Nia" - Purpose.
Dec. 31: "Kuumba" - Creativity.
Jan. 1: "Imani" - Faith..
Non African-Americans are also welcome to participate in greetings. The typical response is "Joyous Kwanzaa."
Source: http://www.officialkwanzaawebsite.org.
Rhea Simmons sets up a table for her discussion about Kwanzaa at Alexander's Family Restaurant on Saturday. (Jason Plotkin - Daily Record/Sunday News)
Ping
On the second day of Kwanzaa Karenga gave to me
Two Jaily birds,
And a Marxist in a red tree.
On the third day of Kwanzaa Karenga gave to me
Three Dixie Chicks.
Two Jaily birds,
And a Marxist in a red tree.
On the fourth day of Kwanzaa Karenga gave to me
Four Lenin busts.
Three Dixie Chicks,
Two Jaily birds,
And a Marxist in a red tree.
On the fifth day of Kwanzaa Karenga gave to me
Five fel-on-ies.
Four Lenin busts,
Three Dixie Chicks,
Two Jaily birds,
And a Marxist in a red tree.
On the sixth day of Kwanzaa Karenga gave to me
Six Castro jumpsuits.
Five fel-on-ies,
Four Lenin busts,
Three Dixie Chicks,
Two Jaily birds,
And a Marxist in a red tree.
On the seventh day of Kwanzaa Karenga gave to me
Seven Mao pajamas,
Six Castro jumpsuits,
Five fel-on-ies,
Four Lenin busts
Three Dixie Chicks,
Two Jaily birds,
And a Marxist in a red tree.
Made me think of the song from the Seinfeld episode with Bert Midler:
“Well, you made a long journey from Milan to Minsk, Rochelle, Rochelle...”
Kwanzaa ping.
Kwanzaa is for atheists, Communists, and, possibly, Unitarians.
Any mention of black supremacy and murder and that NO ONE in Africa celebrates this silliness?
Who in the world takes that sh1t seriously?
"Kwanzaa's roots stretch from York to Africa"
Using incredibly long garden hoses and extension cords.
(And a really big soldering iron)
I drove by a Unitarian Universalist ‘church’ the other day and noted that half the congregation weren’t saying and the other half weren’t sure.
I thought it came from the Flintstones, that alien guy. But I get him mixed up with that plant that grows really fast in the south.
I met my first black person when I was about 7 years old. We were on a train to Chicago, and I met a little black boy about my age. The only experience I had previously with black people was through my little Golden Books (Little Black Sambo), and the occasional sighting on TV. Our conversation went something like this:
Me: Gee! Are you from Africa?
Him: Naw, I’s from New Yawk!
We quickly became fast friends for the remainder of the trip, two American boys about the same age.
Seems to me Kwanzaa only separates Americans based on skin color, and does nothing to celebrate a common American heritage.
Christmas isn’t appropriate for most black Americans? How racist can you get?
If Kwanzaa has been around since 1966 and is intended to bring good into the world can the saps celebrating it tell us when we might expect this good to be delivered?
All we see are mass brawls at shopping malls and fast good joints. Or is that the ‘collective work’ part?
Fast good -> fast food
Pa pa pa uma Mau Mau...Pa pa Uma Mau Mau...
Wasn’t corn a New World plant that never originally grew in Africa?
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