A Geek’s Mini-Guide to Kwanzaa
This name “Kwanzaa” has been bantered around again this Christmas…er, “Holiday” Season and I finally took some time to actually do a little research on what exactly Kwanzaa is. What I did know beforehand was that Kwanzaa is not a truly “African” holiday. There’s no great Kwanzaa tradition that comes from the great continent across the Atlantic.
So what is Kwanzaa and how has it attained status among the big two holidays of the season - Christmas and Hanukkah … or is it Hanukkah and Christmas? Whatever.
Well, Kwanzaa was created in 1966 by Ron Karenga, a controversial black nationalist figure from the 60’s who had some pretty radical ideas. Below is one of his more controversial ideas… [ taken from Wikipedia article ]
In 1967, a year after Karenga proposed this new holiday, he publicly espoused the view that “Jesus was psychotic” and that Christianity was a white religion that blacks should shun.[4] However, as Kwanzaa gained mainstream adherents, Karenga altered his position so as not to alienate practicing Christians, then claiming in the 1997 Kwanzaa: A Celebration of Family, Community, and Culture, “Kwanzaa was not created to give people an alternative to their own religion or religious holiday.” [5]
The good aspects of the holiday is that it encourages the celebration of African culture which is a great thing - but the inception of this holiday was heavy in exclusive, anti-white rhetoric that I personally find a bit disturbing. I would be similarly disturbed if the “race tables” in this instance were switched.
So…after a little reading what are my thoughts on this holiday? Honestly, if you don’t celebrate the birth of Christ as I do - then Kwanzaa away! I just found the background on the holiday intriguing. In fact, it might be cool to find someone who celebrates this holiday and get an insider’s view into this yearly celebration.
Merry Christmas…
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Renee said on December 12, 2006, 11:34 am:
Although I do not actively participate in Kwanzaa, I feel compelled to respond to this particular Blog entry. One of my daughters is half African (Ghanaian) and it has been a continual learning experience on how to raise a socially defined Black individual in a world dominated with white influence. All through my education, right on through my first year as a Ph.D. student, I have focused on racial issues. In my first thesis I interviewed biracial individuals and the most compelling argument they had was how difficult it is to build a racial identity in a society that values and promotes white views. So why Kwanzaa? I completely understand how this ?holiday?/celebration can conflict with many. Why must we, as a society, separate ourselves from each other? Me and my children celebrate the birth of Christ and have accepted Him into our lives with a passion that in nearly indescribable. But when I step back and view society from a different perspective, primarily a racial perspective, I can?t help but understand why an individual would promote celebrating an almost lost heritage. 1966 was a time when Civil Rights were peaked and the fight for equality was well underway. How many Black people had to die in the hands of white haters in order for our society to acknowledge that racism and hatred should be replaced with equality? Take a look at the life of Emmitt Till. His biggest crime, other than just being Black, was looking at a white woman. His mom could barely identify his bloated, beaten body. So does Kwanzaa take away the painful past? Not even close but it does help many individuals embrace a heritage that might have been stolen from them many, many years ago. It also promotes a collective effort that proclaims Black is beautiful, not criminal. And yes, it is not an African tradition. Many Africans identify as African and will tell you point blank that they are not African-American despite the efforts of some to group all Blacks into one nice, neat little package. Talk with some African-Americans and they will confirm the difference. So, maybe Kwanzaa is more about a heritage that is lost and a collective effort to proclaim that love and family and celebration and togetherness are just as important as celebrating the birth of Christ.
jhaas77 said on December 12, 2006, 11:44 am:
Great thoughts Renee! I do want to convey that this brief overview of mine is in no way intended to marginalize anyone. Reading about the Kwanzaa tradition was intriguing and I think it’s important that more people understand what it is about - it’s history and traditions. On the positive side, I see it as an attempt to recapture culture that transcends a simple date on a calendar. ~ Jon (blog author)
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