The Zawadies
Have you ever celebrated Kwanzaa? What is Kwanzaa?
Kwanzaa is a celebration of family, community, and culture. When was the last time you celebrated your culture? Your community? Your family? Well, join Mentor2Youth’s Parent2Village as we are a proud sponsor of the African American Cultural and Historical Museum’s Virtual Community-Wide Kwanzaa Celebration. This will run every night, December 26 through January 1 from 6 pm until 7:30 pm. We are supporting this Pan-African Cultural celebration because we believe that Unity, Self-Determination, Collective Work & Responsibility, Cooperative Economics, Purpose, Creativity, and Faith are the essentials for a great Parent2Village.
We feel so strongly that we are offering some great Zawadies (gifts) to members of the Parent2Village that attend the Kwanzaa events. The first thing you need to know is that you must be enrolled in the Parent2Village to qualify for these Zawadies. Secondly, you need to enroll in the Kwanzaa Event itself to get into the Zoom.
The first gift will be a $500 gift certificate to the Parent2Village member that attends the most nights. There will also be a second-place prize to the members that attend the second most nights ($300 Gift Card), and there will be two $100 gift cards for the member that attends the third most. Please understand that we are committed to giving away $1,000 in attendance prizes. If there are 10 families that come to all seven nights, then we would give $100 to all 10 families. Those 10 families in effect have come in first, second, and third.
Here’s how to qualify.
Go to Mento2Youth.org/enroll to enroll in the Parent2Village.
Then go to the African American Cultural and Historical Museum’s Virtual Community-Wide Kwanzaa Celebration site and register for the Zoom meeting.
YOU MUST DO BOTH TO QUALIFY.
We will announce the winner on Monday, January 4, 2021, via our Facebook page.
If you have any questions, feel free to contact us at Parentvillage@mentor2youth.org or call me directly at 734-224-2101.
There are other smaller Zawadies that we will give away to those in attendance each night.
Happy Kwanzaa, and may this be the beginning of an amazing year!
One cosmic night in ages past, The council of elders called forth the youth of the future.
“Behold, we give you seven seeds.”
“We do not wish to farm,” said the youth.
Then the Elders explained,
“Wherever you go, sow these seeds and you will reap the best from life.”
Umoja - Unity, Kujichagulia - Self-Determination, Ujima - Collective Work And Responsibility, Ujamaa - Cooperative Economic, Nia - Purpose, Kuumba - Creativity, Imani - Faith
The Elders are the traditions of Africa, We African-Americans are the Youth, and the Seven Seeds are the Principles of Kwanzaa. These are our guiding principles.
the nguzo zaba
Are the children well?
Kasserian ingera
Still the traditional greeting among the Masai, honoring the high value placed on the children's well-being
december 29
2 interlocking half circles
Two interlocking half circles - the Nsibidi symbol of togetherness and family
December 26
Dagi knot
A Pan African symbol of unity found in several African cultures, i.e., Yoruba, Hausa, Bushongo, etc.
december 30
The Heiroglyph nefer
Ancient Egyptian symbol of beauty and good
December 27
Ahenwa
The Akan throne, symbol of national identity, cultural groundedness and rightful governance
december 31
The Seven Vibrations
The seven vibrations of divine creation - the Dogon symbol of creativity
december 28
Akoma ntoaso
The Adinkra symbol of shared effort and obligation, it takes a village
january 1
The anhk djed
The ancient Egyptian double symbol of the ankh (life) and djed pillar (stability, endurance) serves here as a symbol of steadifastness in commitment to the Good, the Right, and the Beautiful in life
preparation
There is a traditionally established way of celebrating Kwanzaa. We should therefore observe these guidelines to make our Kwanzaa the most beautiful and engaging one and to keep the tradition. Without definite guidelines and core values and practices there is no holiday.
First, you should come to the celebration with a profound respect for its values, symbols and practices and do nothing to violate its integrity, beauty and expansive meaning. Secondly, you should not mix the Kwanzaa holiday or its symbols, values and practice with any other culture. This would violate the principles of Kujichagulia (Self-Determination) and thus violate the integrity of the holiday.
Thirdly, choose the best and most beautiful items to celebrate Kwanzaa. This means taking time to plan and select the most beautiful objects of art, colorful African cloth, fresh fruits and vegetables, etc. so that every object used represents African culture and your commitment to the holiday in the best of ways.
procedures
First, a central place in the home for the Kwanzaa Set, the symbols of Kwanzaa is chosen. A table is then spread with a beautiful piece of African cloth. Then, the mkeka (mat) is placed down and all of the other symbols are placed on it or immediately next to it to symbolize our rootedness in our tradition. Next the Kinara (candle holder) is placed on the mat and the Mishumaa Saba (seven candles) are placed in the kinara.
The colors of Kwanzaa are black, red and green; black for the people, red for their struggle, and green for the future and hope that comes from their struggle. Therefore there is one black candle, three red and three green candles. These are the mishumaa saba (the seven candles) and they represent the Seven Principles. The black candle represents the first principle Umoja (unity) and is placed in the center of the kinara. The red candles represent the principles of Kujichagulia (self-determination), Ujamaa (cooperative economics) and Kuumba (creativity) and are placed to the left of the black candle. The green candles represent the principles of Ujima (collective work and responsibility), Nia (purpose) and Imani (faith) and are placed to the right of the black candle. The black candle is lit first on the first day of the celebration. And the remaining candles are lit afterwards from left to right on the following days. This procedure is to indicate that the people come first, then the struggle and then the hope that comes from the struggle.