Creativity and Faith...Happy Kwanzaa

On the 6th day of Kwanzaa we celebrated Kuumba... Creativity.  We are encouraged to do always as much as we can, in the way that we can, in order to leave our community more beautiful and beneficial than when we inherited it.

Today on the 7th and final day of Kwanzaa we celebrate Imani...Faith.  Today we are reminded to believe with all of our heart in our people, our parents, our teachers, our leaders and the righteousness and victory of our struggle.

Find out more about Kwanzaa: http://www.officialkwanzaawebsite.org

Ujima...Collective Work and Responsibility

Today, on the third day of Kwanzaa, reflect on Ujima.

 
UJIMA
Ujima, pronounced "oo-GEE-mah" means Collective Work and Responsibility where we are encouraged to build and maintain our community together and make our brother's and sister's problems our problems and to solve them together.  This day reminds us of our obligation to the past, present and future, and that we have a role to play in the community, society, and world.

Symbols of Kwanzaa

In the Symbols of Kwanzaa picture to the left, the crops are the Mazao which are symbolic of African harvest celebrations and of the rewards of productive and collective labor.



Find out more about Kwanzaa: http://www.officialkwanzaawebsite.org

Kugichagula....Day of Self-Determination

Symbols of Kwanzaa

Today is the second day of Kwanzaa where we focus on
Kugichagula which is Self-Determination.

In the Symbols of Kwanzaa picture to the right, the candle holder is the Kinara which is symbolic of our roots, our parent people -- continental Africans.

Kugichagula...Day of Self-Determination

Kugichagula, pronounced "koo-jee-cha-goo-LEE-ah" means to define ourselves, name ourselves, create for ourselves, and speak for ourselves.














Find out more about Kwanzaa: http://www.officialkwanzaawebsite.org

Umoja...Day of Unity

Happy Kwanzaa!!!

Symbols of Kwanzaa

Today is the first day of Kwanzaa, an annual seven day cultural festival celebrating the African American people, their culture and their heritage.  Derived from the Swahili phrase "matunda ya kwanza" which means "first fruits", Kwanzaa has its roots in the ancient African first-fruit harvest celebrations. However, its modern history begins in 1966 when it was developed by Dr. Maulana Ron Karenga. Inspired by the civil rights struggles of the 1960's, Dr. Karenga conceived a holiday that would bring African Americans together in celebration of their black culture.  Each day of Kwanzaa represents the seven principles of Kwanzaa...the first is Umoja.

In the Symbols of Kwanzaa picture above, the cup is the Unity Cup or Kikombe cha Umoja, which is symbolic of the foundational principle and practice of unity which makes all else possible.

Kwanzaa

Umoja...Day of Unity

Umoja, pronounced "oo-MOE-jah", is a day of unity in which we are encouraged to strive for and maintain unity in the family, community, nation and race.  On Umoja, we are reminded that each member of the family, and by extension the community, is constituted by a web of interpersonal relationships. The health and possibilities of the family and community, therefore, is dependent upon the quality of relationship within the family and community.










Here is the link to the original Kwanzaa website:  http://www.officialkwanzaawebsite.org/index.shtml
Link to previous EH blogposts on Kwanzaa: http://experiencinghistory.blogspot.com/2010/12/kwanzaa-founded-in-1966-was.html

A Day of Service

"Every time I take a flight, I am always mindful of the many people who make a successful journey possible - the known pilots and the unknown ground crew.  So you honor the dedicated pilots of our struggle who have sat at the controls as the freedom movement soared into orbit." 

Martin Luther King, Jr., 1964 Nobel Prize Acceptance Speech

Today is Martin Luther King Jr. Day.  At the White House Rose Garden on November 2, 1983, President Ronald Reagan signed a bill creating a federal holiday to honor King. Observed for the first time on January 20, 1986, it is called Martin Luther King, Jr. Day. Following President George H. W. Bush's 1992 proclamation, the holiday is observed on the third Monday of January each year, near the time of King's birthday.^[200] On January 17, 2000, for the first time, Martin Luther King Jr. Day was officially observed in all fifty U.S. states.^[  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martin_Luther_King,_Jr.

Read Coretta Scott King's letter on the meaning of the Martin Luther King, Jr. Holiday:  http://www.thekingcenter.org/KingHoliday/Default.aspx

 

Happy Kwanzaa!!!

Kwanzaa, founded in 1966, was originally meant to be alternative to the commercialism of Christmas.  Even though it was originally intended to be an alternative to Christmas, many African-Americans recognize both holidays focusing on the principles of Kwanzaa as a cultural holiday while still recognizing their faith in Christmas celebrations.  Each of the seven days of Kwanzaa is dedicated to one of the following principles:

Umoja (Unity): To strive for and to maintain unity in the family, community, nation, and race.

Kujichagulia (Self-Determination): To define ourselves, name ourselves, create for ourselves, and speak for ourselves.

Ujima (Collective Work and Responsibility): To build and maintain our community together and make our brothers' and sisters' problems our problems, and to solve them together.

Ujamaa (Cooperative Economics): To build and maintain our own stores, shops, and other businesses and to profit from them together.

Nia (Purpose): To make our collective vocation the building and developing of our community in order to restore our people to their traditional greatness.

Kuumba (Creativity): To do always as much as we can, in the way we can, in order to leave our community more beautiful and beneficial than we inherited it.

Imani (Faith): To believe with all our heart in our people, our parents, our teachers, our leaders, and the righteousness and victory of our struggle.

Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas