P age B4
D ecember 21, 1994 • 1 he P orieand O bserver
ENTERTAINMENT
CELEBRATE
KW ANZAA
DN A
After C hristm as Kwanzaa Begins
R ight in tim e for the H oliday
S e a so n , P rax is P u b lic a tio n s, Inc.
o f M a d iso n , W I, w ill p u b lish
K w anzaa: How to C e le b ra te it in
Y our H om e, th e first in a uniq u e
new se rie s o f five Big books d e
sig n e d to h e lp fam ilies c e le b ra te
A frican A m erican h o lid ay s. The
co m p leted series w ill also include
B ig B o o k s a b o u t M artin L u th er
K ing D ay, Ju n e te e n th , Black H is
to ry M onth and M alco lm X Day.
K w an zaa is one o f the m ost
im p o rta n t h o lid a y s o b se rv e d by
A fric a n A m erican s. It is a tim e
fo r re u n io n s o f A fric a n A m e ri
can F a m ilie s and p e o p le s, for
re c o g n itio n o f A frican A m erican
a c h ie v e m e n ts, and for c u ltu ra l
r e n e w a l a n d r e d e d ic a tio n to
stro n g fam ily v a lu e s. E v ery y ear
sin c e 1966, m illio n s o f A m eri
can s have c e le b ra te d K w anzaa,
y et m any o th e rs are still unsure
how to p a rtic ip a te in the annual
se v e n -d a y ritu a l, D ecem b er 26
th ro u g h Ja n u a ry 1.
K w anzaa: H ow to C e le b ra te
it in Y o u r H om e sh o w s how one
A f r ic a n A m e ric a n fa m ily o b
se rv e s K w anzaa at hom e. I llu s
tra te d th ro u g h o u t in full c o lo r, it
p ro v id e s an in sp irin g m odel for
fa m ilie s to c re a te th e ir ow n sp e
cia l c e le b ra tio n s o f th is 'im p o r-
ta n t A frican A m erican c u ltu ra l
h o lid a y . The tex t ta k e s re a d e rs
ste p by step th ro u g h a n -a c tu a l
K w an zaa c e le b ra tio n , and also
in c lu d e s a s p e c ia l K w a n z a a
p le d g e , o p e n in g and c lo sin g li
b a tio n s, and a c tiv itie s the en tire
fam ily can en jo y . T he large fo r
m at (fifte e n by e ig h te e n in ch es)
an d larg e p rin t m ake it easy for
a d u lts and c h ild re n o f all ages to
use th e book in any g ro u p s e t
tin g , w h eth er it be the fam ily,
c la ssro o m , clu b , or o rg a n iz a tio n .
¿6
Kwanzaa is not a religious hol
iday or an alternative to Christmas.
It's a seven-day Acrocentric cele
bration that beings Dec. 26.
Adapted from the annual agri
cultural festivals that are an inte
gral part o f A frican trad itio n ,
Kwanzaa, American sty le, was cre
ated in 1966 to unify the African-
A m erican com m unity tow ard a
common set o f goals and objec
tives and to reassert traditional val
ues.
The name com es from the
phrase, mantunda ya kwanza, which
in Swahili means “the first fruits o f
the harvest.” The extra “a” was
added to make it uniquely Ameri
can.
“The celebration o f Kwanzaa
is based on the ideals o f family,
heritage and community and pro
vides a wonderful opportunity to
reflect on traditional values,” said
Sterling D. Plumpp, University o f
Illinois at Chicago associate pro
fessor o f African-American stud
ies.
In recen t y e a rs, K w anzaa
ob serv an ces have grow n in p o p
ularity . An e stim a te d 15 m il
lion p e o p le o f A fric a n d e sc e n t
in the U nited S ta te s, C anada,
the C a rib b e a n , E ngland and A f
ric a n now c e le b ra te K w anzaa
in som e form .
Food from throughout the Af
rican d iaspora are served and
zawadi, or gifts o f cultural signifi
cance. are exchanged. The ideals o f
the holiday, collectively known as
the Nguzo Saba, are underscored
through a daily cand le-l ighting cer
emony. Kwanzaa’s seven princi
p le s
are:
U m o ja
(u n ity );
Kujichagulia, (self-determination);
Ujim a(collective work and respon
sibility); Ujamaa, (cooperative eco
nomics); Nia, (purpose); Kuumba
(creativity); and Imani, (faith).
Too Much
Holiday C heer” Makes
Roadways Dangerous
Although much progress has
been made, drunk driving continues
to be a significant factor in traffic
accident deaths. More than a third o f
all drivers killed in car crashes in
1993 were legally drunk.
The upcoming holidays and the
a c c o m p an y in g p a rtie s and get-
togethers can add to the problem
Fatal accident involving drunk driv
ers increase significantly in Decem
ber. Thirty-nine percent o f all drivers
killed in traffic accidents in Decem
ber 1993 were drunk.
“ Even with heightened public
awareness and education campaigns
regarding the dangers o f drunk driv
ing, the problem continues,” said
Lowell R. Beck, president o f the
National Association o f Independent
Insurers. “For your protection, use
extra caution when driving during
the hoi iday season. A Iso, for the safety
o f others, use common sense and
courtesy when your celebrating in
volves alcohol.”
For holiday revelers, there are a
number o f options to prevent drunk
driving deaths. Simply abstain from
drinking at a party or, for groups and
couples, have someone volunteer to
be the “designated driver.” Finally,
the biggest favor you can do for a
friend who has had too much to drink
is to take away their car keys, offer
them a ride home or call a cab
Teenagers, while less likely than
adults to drive after drinking, have a
substantially higher crash risk when
they do. In 19 93,27 percent o f 16 to
20 year old drivers killed in car crash
es were legally drunk, even though
you must be 21 to legally purchase
alcohol. To help stem this problem,
parents o f young drivers can limit
teen driving hours. Parents should
also insist that safety belts be worn at
all times by all occupants o f the car.
Finally, have a backup plan ready,
ju st in case liquor is used, to get the
kids home without driving.
Even drinking in moderation
may affect driving perform ance.
Studies have shown that a blood al
cohol content o f 0.02 percent affects
a person’s driving ability and in
creases the likelihood o f an accident.
Because the effects o f alcohol vary
with each person, it's difficult to
predict exactly how many drinks it
takes to make a person's driving dan
gerous.
Furthermore, the type o f alcohol
is not necessarily the determine fac
tor in how a person is affected by
alcohol. T here is an equivalent
amount o f alcohol in 12 ounces o f
beer, 4 ounces o f wine and 1.25
ounces o f 80-proof I iquor Beer, how
ever, is the most common drink con
sumed by people involved in alco
hol-related accidents.
Precinct Gives H oliday Safety Tips
The holiday season is here and with Christmas coming, shoppers will
be visiting shopping malls in large number T he N o rth east Police P recinct
h ad the follow ing tips:
• W hile shopping, avoid carrying large amounts o f cash and credit cards.
• D on’t leave packages, purses or other valuables conspicuously displayed
in your vehicle
• Be aware o f your surroundings Park in well lit areas and be wary of
strangers loitering in parking lots and near automatic teller machines
• W hile using the ATM, d on’t let others stand close behind you.
A special Kwanzaa exhibit premiered this month at Walt Disney World as part of Epcot's Holidays Around the World
celebration. The exhibit features information about the holiday and items used during the celebration. Walt Disney
Imagmeers worked with African-American groups in Florida and California to complete the display.
J©IN THE iPCC E©R
K W A M Z A A FESTIVITIES
.III
Kwanzaa is a nonreligious holiday celebrated December 26 - January
1. It is based on African agricultural celebrations and collective principles,
and was created by African American. Dr. Maulana Karenga in 1966.
Kwanzaa is not a replacement for Christmas, but is a seven day holiday
acclaiming a support system using the "Nguzo Saba” , w hich is a group o f
seven principles for guidance. The seven principles are: Unity (Umoja),
Self Determination (Kujichagulia), Collective Work and Responsibility
(Ujima), Cooperative Economics (Ujamaa), Purpose (Nia), Creativity
(Kuumba), and Faith (Imani). December, IFCC Kwanzaa Community
Project; 5340 N. Interstate-Call 823-2000 for event information.
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KWANZAA C alendar o f Events
0
DADDY'S LONG LEG COLLECTOR'S DOLLS - 1994 SANTA
Julia's
The Ultimate Collection
1016 SW Morrison Street
Downtown Portland
Open Monday - Saturday, 10am-6pni
Phone 503-2 74-930 8
December«
Saturday
UMOJA (Unity)
Open House 12 - 3 pm
December,
Sunday
KUJICHAGULIA (Self
Determination) 6 - 9 pm
D ecem ber
Sunday
UJIMA (Collective Work
and Responsiblility)
Exhibit/Reception 2 - 6 pm
Decem ber
Monday
UJAMAA (Cooperative
Economics) 6 - 9 pm
D ecem ber
Sunday
NIA (Purpose) 4 - 6 pm
Decem ber
Tuesday
KUUMBA (Creativity)
12 - 2 pm
Decem ber
Thursday
IMANI (Faith) 6 - 6:45 pm
Inner City Student Perfor
mance 7 pm
DEC.1-31,1994
Christmas Layaway Now Available!
5340 N. Interstate -Call 823-2000
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