Kwanzaa: A festival that can be celebrated by all cultures
By JOE L. HUGHES II Ledger Staff Writer joe@gaffneyledger.com

Hours after families finish carving Thanksgiving turkeys, their minds immediately shift to the hope that plenty of presents will be awaiting them a few weeks later on Christmas.

Stuffed between "turkey day" and New Year's Day are an array of holidays celebrated by different religious and ethnic groups.

There's Hanukkah, the annual Jewish holiday also called the "Festival of Lights," an eight-day celebration commemorating the re-dedication of the Holy Temple in Jerusalem at the time of the Maccabean Revolt of the 2nd century B.C.

On the other hand, several countries including the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada and New Zealand take an extra day off to shop, using Dec. 26— also known as Boxing Day— to get ahead on post-Christmas sales and early starts to "January sales."

In most cases, the meaning of these celebrations during the holiday season are unknown due to the traditions and hoopla surrounding the events reserved for those of the nationality or ethnic group.

But what about certain festivals like Kwanzaa that can be celebrated by people of all cultures and races?

"A lot of people are turned off because they think it's trying to replace religion," said renowned author Toschia Santiago Moffett. "But the celebration is all about spirituality and how we can all make a difference in helping our fellow man."

Kwanzaa is celebrated from Dec. 26 to Jan. 1 each year.

The week-long holiday was established by California State University-Long Beach professor Dr. Maulana Karenga in 1967 with the purpose of giving African- Americans the opportunity to reconnect with their African cultural and historical heritage by uniting in meditation and study of African traditions and common humanist principles. More recently, it has evolved to where people of all races are making it a part of their holiday season.

"For a while many churches and other groups were telling people to stay away," Moffett said, "but as more people, mostly of Anglo origin began celebrating Kwanzaa, it seems more are starting to embrace the holiday and make it part of their holiday tradition."

Deriving from the Swahili phrase "matunda ya kwanza" or "first fruits," Kwanzaa consists of seven days of celebration, including the lighting

of candles and pouring of libations, in addition to musical

selections and other activities.

"All the activities were derived from our African ancestors," Moffett said.

But at the heart of Kwanzaa are principles that aren't only meant to be practiced during the week-long holiday.

The Seven Principles, known as "Nguzo Saba" in Swahili, include Umoja (unity), Kujichagulia (selfdetermination), Ujima (collective work and responsibility), Ujamaa (cooperative economics), Nia (purpose), Kuumba (creativity) and Imani (faith).

"You can look at every principle and they can all can be done in our daily lives," Moffett said. "These rules are all with the purpose of maintaining a good balance, as long as we understand that we don't live on this planet alone."

According to Moffett, the importance of Kwanzaa primarily to educate younger generations of those whose family tree has roots in Africa.

"A lot of children don't know the story of their lives, one that begins with their ancestors many years ago in Africa," Moffett said. "It's time for them to learn about it, because it's an important part of what makes them who they are."