— i-
D ecember 22, 1993 • T he P ortland O bserver
P age 14
DC
THE
MEANING
CELEBRATE
A
nil 1 '
Kwanza is a Swahili word meaning
"first" and signifying the first fruits of the
harvest. From December 26 to January 1,
many people of African descent in America
celebrate Kwanza.
In Africa, there are many customs which
transcend the various ethnic groups found on the
continent. One of these is the celebration of the
harvest . At this time of the year, people come
together to celebrate and give thanks for their good
fortune. Working towards the harvest is a com­
munal effort, as is the celebration.
A
Here in America in 1966, Maulana Ron
Karenga and the U.S. Organization adopted the
basic principles of the harvest in Africa to create
the celebration of Kwanza. Karenga recognized
that on the whole, Africans born in America do not
live in an agricultural setting. Nonetheless, he
sought to emphasize that the basic principles found
in producing the harvest are vital to the building and
maintenance of strong and wholesome communities.
In this way, Kwanza was developed. Kwanza
is that time when we reflect on our use of the basic
principles, share and enjoy the fruits of our labor;
and recommit ourselves to the collective achieve ­
ment of a better life for our family, our community,
and our people.
M any p eo p le in the A frican
American comm unity o f Clark County
have been working to prepare for the
“Celebrate Kwanzaa” evening set for
Sunday, December 19th,atC larkPU D
(Mill Plain and Ft. V ancouver W ay).
There will be a meal, a Kwanzaa
guidebook for every fam ily, and ac­
tivities for all ages. This event is free
and open to everyone.
Kwanzaa is the A frican A m eri­
can cultural celebration that is ob­
served between December 26 and Janu­
ary 1st. Kwanzaa is a K isw ahili work
(East African area) that m eans “the
first fruits o f the harvest.” K w anzaa is
a unique American Holiday that pays
tribute to the rich cultural roots of
A m erican s o f A frican A n cestry .
Kwanzaa is based upon seven funda­
mental principle (Nguzo Saba) which
serve as a useful guide for daily living
for all people.
T hey are:
1. U m oja (U nity)--T o strive for
and maintain unity in the fam ily,com ­
m unity, nation and race.
2. K u jich ag u lia (Self-determ i-
n a tio n )-T o define ourselves, name
ourselves, create for our selves and
speak for ourselves instead o f being
defined, nam ed, created for and spo­
ken for by other.
3. U jim a (C ollective W o rk an d
R esponsibility)--T o build and main-
tainour community together and make
our sister’s and brother’s problems
our problems and to solve them to­
gether.
4. U jam aa (C ooperative Eco-
nomics)--To build and maintain our
own stores, shops and other businesses
and to profit from them together.
5. Nia (P u rp o se -T o make our
collective vocation the building and
developing of our community in order
to restore our people to their tradi-
tional greatness.
6. K uum ba (C reativity)--T o do
always as much as we can, in the way
we can, in order to leave our com m u­
nity more beautiful and beneficial than
we inherited it.
7. Im ani (Faith)--Tobelieve with
all our heart in our people, our par­
ents, our teachers, our leaders and the
righteousness and victory o f our
struggle.
The Clark County Department of
com m unity Services has provided
some Substance Abuse Prevention
funds to help sponsor this event, and
the Homebuilders family counseling
program is providing staff support in
the planning efforts. The goals are to
build upon family strengths through
the addition o f the Nguzo Saba (seven
principles), and help families use these
principles as tools in preventing alco­
hol and drug abuse.
1993 Festival Of Events
December
(26) Umoja/Unity Children’s Program
2-4pm Presented by the Black Educational Center
(27) Kujichagulia/Self-Determination
African History Jeopardy Game
7-9pm Presented by the Sirius Study Group
(28) Ujima/Collective Work And Responsibility
“The African Legacy In Collective Work
And Responsibility”
7-9pm Presented by nationally recognized artists
Adriene Cruz and Charlotte Lewis
(29) Ujamaa/Cooperative Economics African Mar­
ketplace
7-9pm Presented by the Black Educational Center
Parents Organization
(30) Nia/Purpose “Voices Of Our Youth”
7-9 Presented by the Urban League of Portland
Whitney Young and Street Academy Program
(31) Kuumba/Creativity“Karamu! The Big Feast”
6-9prn Presented by various community organiza­
tions.
January 1. 1994 Imani/Faith Family Day
Celebrate Kwanzaa at home with family/friends.
Symbols
There are symbols which have a special meaning to the celebration of
Kwansza. The mkeka is a straw mat which symbolizes the tradition as the
foundation on which all else rests. The kinara is a seven-space candle-holder,
representing the original stalk from which black people originated.
The seven candles, or mishumaa, stand for the Seven Principles. The
Mahindi are the ears o f corn which represent the offspring (children) o f the
stalk (father and mother of the house). T hezaw adi or gifts represent the fruits
o f the labor o f the parents and the rewards o f the seeds sown by the children.
Location Multicultural Senior Center
5315 NE Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
' f
Y
t
Iitit i
Kwanzaa Activities Coordinated By the Black Edu­
cational Center, For Information Call 284-9552
L_1
MSHUMAA
MUHINOI
KIMARA
MKLKA
Kwanzaa It’s A Black Thang And You Would Understand”
The Bustling in A m erica begins
as the holidays grow near, as people
prepare for H olidays my thoughts are
about my family and our Kwanzaa. I
love celebrating K w anzaa because it
is not a European holiday or a reli­
gious holiday; it’s a Black celebration
testifying to the richness o f my A fri­
can heritage. 1" I t's estim ated over 13
million Africa A m ericans observed
Kwanzaa.”
It’s is the occasion that brings
Black folks together regardless o f their
religion or their political affiliations.
All ethnic groups in A m erica have
always had their holiday, the Irish
have Saint Patrick Day, T he Chinese
have Chinese New Year, the Native
American have their Pow W ow s and
the Jewish com m unity have H anuk­
kah. Arriving in bondage nullified all
African traditional holidays. The slave
ow ner crim inalized our celebration
and tribal rituals, th a t’s w hy I ask for
blessings on Dr. M aulana K arenga for
founding a Black Holiday here in
America that my children, my com ­
munity and I can celebrate with pride.
As Christm as com m ercials mock
the meaning o f gift giving.excitem ent
and movement occupy my home as we
make preparation for the Kwanzaa
feast, gift m aking and the decoration
o f the table and house. To be inclusive
o f all the children I match a child per
principle, this m akes every one feel
good, and if they motivated they can
practice their speech for their night
lighting.
Usually I lcttheoldestchildbegin
the first night for lighting the candle.
He lights the night o f Umoja (Unity),
Kujichagulia (self-determination) is
lit by the second child. This routine
will continue with all seven children
until wc reach the last night of Imani
(Faith). We really put honor in the
lighting of the candles, so the children
feel special by having that responsi­
bility. If you have seven or more chil­
dren then be creative so that all are
included in the rituals.
Some say Kwanzaa means first
fruits or the harvest celebration, it is a
Swahili word. Itisasev en d ay holiday
that is celebrated from December 26
through January 1st. As mentioned
earlier Kwanzaa holiday was started
by an African American name Dr.
M aulana Karenga.
This holiday allows us seven days
to reflect on our great history in A f­
rica, our mighty struggle in America,
our superior accomplishments and the
continual growth of the African race.
We are an African people.
Though Kwanzaa can be a time to
reflect the past, the present and the
future, we must also strive to keep it
interesting and inspirational for our
younger people. K wanzaa is very heal -
ing to the family because it teaches
patience, humility and it builds self­
esteem based on the seven principles.
In society that looks for immediate
gratification it is important that we
allow K w anzaatorem ainenjoyableto
our children by asking for their input
during the observance o f the seven
days.
It’s important to begin prepara­
tion during late fall because to have a
productive Kwanzaa you need certain
item sand brushing up on your Swahili
is helpful for working the nightly ritu­
als. However don’t be discouraged
from celebrating our holiday if you
haven’t become familiar with the lan­
guage.
Every holiday has specific rituals
and symbols that are associated with
it. Ours are the Maka (table cloth), I
recommend an attractive African print
tocover the table or mande. The Kinara
(candle holder) is made by my hus­
band out of wood. The seven candles
are red, black and green candles. The
Misibudi (ears of com ) which repre­
sents the number o f children in the
house. Lastly we need the un ity cup for
us all to drink from.
On the morning o f Umoja the
children begin to decorate the house.
We choose our most beautiful African
fabric to put on the table. We also find
our most festive looking basket to put
the com in. The basket or bowl should
be from Africa and made by an Afri­
can person. The Unity cup gets pol­
ished and filled with a nice non-alco­
hol beverage. My cup is a pretty cop-
percolorbut many families use wooded
cups for their drink. My Kinara was
hand made by my husband and painted
by the children and myself. Kinaras
can be expensive but that they last a
life time if maintained properly. How­
ever if you know someone with mini­
mal carpentry skills or a student who
is taking wood shop, I am sure you
could have one made for reasonable
cost. Kwanzaa is a time of sharing
therefor it is important that our holi­
day be economically sound for the
participants. Regardless of ones in­
come level, all persons should be able
to participate in Kwanzaa, so it is
important that we honor the sim plic­
ity of the celebration.
The sooner you invest in your
Kwanzaa necessities, the less stress­
ful the celebration will be. I encourage
you to purchase or make your needed
items before December 26. Many of
the materials needed for decorating
arc often in relatives or your own
hom e. T h a t’s the e n jo y m e n t o f
Kwanzaa to be creative and explore
where the desired things are with in
our community.
My husband and I compete with
the children for who will have the best
decorating ideas. Decorating ground
rules include only items with an Afri­
can background, that includes items
that our grandparents my have made
and the Caribbean. Red, black and
green are symbolic colors and should
be remembered when choosing deco­
rations.
The things that we have used
have been African fabric, we have
placed African violet plant, Black are,
figurines, African beads, or things
that our ancestors may have owned.
African books and various styles of
Kwanzaa greeting cards can really
enhance the house.
My guest are usually amazed at
the simplicity o f the African centric
decor of the house that gives such a
strong message during this celebra­
tion. The kinara is placed on my din­
ning room table and will remain there
until the holiday is over. During this
time I am more apt to make sure
African m usic is playing, and that the
atmosphere remain observant of our
culture. Sweet Honey and the Rock an
acappclla group has a wonderful
Kwanzaa song that children enjoy
hearing. I also urge you to visit the
library during this time to locate lit­
erature to help support the Kwanzaa
rituals.
Mental and spiritual knowledge
o f the Nguzo Saba (the seven prin­
ciples) is as important as the physical
appearance o f the home. The prin­
ciples are the foundation of the cel­
ebration and substance for a sound
family, sisterhood and brotherhood
linkage. The feast is on the last night,
we all cook favorite African or South­
ern dishes. We dress up in our finest
African attire, head wraps and kufis
(African skull caps) are displayed.
With African centric clothes readily
accessible the sky’s the limit for dress
up.
The closing night is I mani (Faith),
we thank our Creator, acknowledge
our ancestors, discuss the seven prin­
ciples in numerical order. Before the
night is over gifts are exchanged be­
tween family and friends. Originally
Kwanzaa gifts were to be hand made,
I try to honor that custom, so my
family and I give things that are easy
to make, such as hand made bath­
robes, pot holders, painted pictures,
strung beads, plants or Black educa­
tional books.
Kwanzaa is my testimonial that
we are an African people and we must
take time out to reflect on our global
heritage and for seven days give our
full attention to the recipe (the seven
principles) for aiding ourselves, fam­
ily, community and motherland with
health and inspiration. If you haven’t
celebrated Kwanzaa, do it this year, it
only gets better with practice.
Written by Shafia M. Monroe,
A Mother and executive director of
Imani Women’s Support Project, Inc.