A banner displays a established kinara holding seven candles representing the seven principles of Kwanzaa at the Laguna Woods African American Heritage Club’s celebration on Saturday, Dec. 16, in Clubhouse 5.
(Photo by Mark Rabinowitch)
Kwanzaa celebrates African American and Pan-African culture, history, family and community.
The holiday was created in 1966 by Dr. Maulana Karenga, a professor of Africana studies at Cal State Long Beach, and is typically observed on the week between Christmas and New Year’s, starting on Dec. 26.
The holiday has roots in both established and state-of-the-art celebrations throughout Africa, and promotes values such as unity, self-determination, purpose, faith and creativity — known as the seven principles of Kwanzaa.
In a letter published this week in the Los Angeles Sentinel, Karenga wrote an annual message wishing Africans peace and solidarity, particularly in the ongoing struggle for freedom and equality.
“Kwanzaa was conceived and born in the womb, work and transformative struggles of the Black Freedom Movement… shaped by that defining decade of fierce strivings and struggles for freedom, justice and associated goods waged by Africans and other peoples of color all over the world in the 1960s,” Karenga wrote. “Kwanzaa thus came into being, grounded itself and grew as an act of freedom, an instrument of freedom, a celebration of freedom and a practice of freedom.”
The name “Kwanzaa” is derived from the Swahili phrase, “matunda ya kwanza.” At home, families can also celebrate with feasts, daily activities, reading books, or watching films that relate to the seven principles.
Karenga called it a “righteous reveling in our recaptured sense of the sacredness, soulfulness and beauty of our Black selves.”
Here are several local Kwanzaa celebrations and events across Southern California.
L.A. County
Join Parenting for Liberation & Dior Sunset for a free annual Pre-Kwanzaa Celebration community event celebrating Black family and culture. The group will celebrate at Lueders Park for Kwanzaa arts & crafts activities, dance performances, and kinara giveaways.
Join the African American Cultural Center in Long Beach to celebrate the Kwanzaa value of “kujichagulia,” or self-determination, with a candle-lighting ceremony, music and dance, a karamu feast, and more. Doors open at 5 p.m. Suggested donation of $10. The Cultural Center gallery also offers an African holiday celebrations exhibit on Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday through Dec. 29. Contact 562-426-2670 or visit aacclb.org for more information.
Join the Southern California Children’s Museum for a kid-friendly introduction to Kwanzaa. Children will hear My First Kwanzaa, an interactive exploration into the meaning of the holiday with Ina the Sunshine Storyteller. Kinara bead bracelet crafting to follow. Visit socalkids.org for more info.
Meet at the Center Courtyard at the Ovation Hollywood shopping convoluted for a day of free entertainment, performances, food and more, celebrating Pan-African culture. Activities will a performance from the Ujilma dance and drum troupe, Kwanzaa cookie decorating, and kids’ kinara crafts and drumming.
Inland Empire
The 4th annual Kwanzaa celebration at the Millard Sheets Art Center at the Fairplex in Pomona will feature artistic performances, spoken word, cultural foods, and an artisan marketplace; all inspired by African heritage traditions. Parking is free. Visit kwanzaajoy.com for more info.
The Kwanzaa Ball Volume II, presented by the Women’s Inspirational Network and the San Bernardino NAACP, will celebrate Kwanzaa values with a Pan-African dinner menu, diverse performances and vendors from the diaspora. Special honorees include community leaders Dr. Hardy Brown Sr., Sherri Adams and La Kiesha Armstrong-Davis. Admission is confined. Info and pre-sale tsicket are available at thewinorganization.com.
Orange County
The Pretend City Children’s Museum in Irvine commemorates December cultural holidays around the world, including Kwanzaa. The museum is closed for the holidays on Dec. 24-26 and Jan. 1-2. Visit pretendcity.org for more details.
