The Meaning of Kwanza
Kwanza consists of seven days of celebration, including candle lighting and libations (the ritual of pouring a drink as an offering to God.) The celebration ends on day seven with a feast and gift giving.
The purpose of Kwanza is to celebrate "the seven principles of blackness". Each of the seven days of Kwanza is to celebrate one of these principles.
Unity-To strive for and to maintain unity in the family, community, nation, and race.
Self Determination- To define ourselves, name ourselves, create for ourselves, and speak for ourselves.
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.
Cooperative Economics-To build and maintain our own stores, shops, and other businesses and to profit from them together.
Purpose-To make our collective vocation the building and developing of our community in order to restore our people to their traditional greatness.
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.
Faith-To believe with all our heart in our people, our parents, our teachers, our leaders, and the righteousness and victory of our struggle.
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Post a CommentHere is what I found out, Maybe should should find out about the founder of Kwanza. Blacks should be outraged by attempts to stamp out Christianity from Christmas celebrations while accepting Kwanzaa as mainstream, says a black minister.
Rev. Jesse Lee Peterson, founder and president of BOND, Brotherhood Organization of A New Destiny, and author of WND Books’ “Scam,†notes that while public school administrators and city officials attempt to ban nativity scenes, Christmas carols, candy canes and even Christmas trees from public places, Kwanzaa has been accepted as mainstream.
While commonly viewed as an “African†holiday, observed from Dec. 26 to Jan. 1, Kwanzaa actually was created in the U.S. in 1966 by Dr. Maulana “Ron†Karenga, the head of a violent black-power group, United Slaves Organization, which was a rival to the Black Panthers.
In the 1970s, Karenga served four years in prison for conspiracy and assault in the torture of two female followe
Yes, I had to learn it way past my high school years, in fact it became a tradition the year I graduated. The younger folk in the family are very in tuned with it. Thanks for shraing.