KWANZAA:
“Kwanzaa, an African-American holiday which celebrates family, community, and culture, is the fastest growing holiday in the U.S. An estimated 18 million Africans celebrate Kwanzaa each year around the world, including celebrants in the U.S., Africa, the Caribbean, and South America, especially Brazil, Canada, India, Britain and numerous European countries.
The holiday was created by Dr. Maulana Karenga, a scholar-activist who is currently professor and chair of the Department of Black Studies at California State University at Long Beach. Several cities in the U.S. have issued proclamations in honor of the celebration of Kwanzaa. Among them are Baltimore, Buffalo, Los Angeles, Miami, Newark, New Orleans, New York, and Philadelphia.
Kwanzaa as an African-American holiday belongs to the most ancient tradition in the world, the African tradition. Drawing from and building on this rich and ancient tradition, Kwanzaa makes its own unique contribution to the enrichment and expansion of African tradition by reaffirming the importance of family, community, and culture.
Kwanzaa is represented by seven symbols: Mazao (crops), Mkeka (mat), Kinara (candle holder), Mishumaa Saba (seven candles), Muhindi (ears of corn), Zawadi (gifts), and Kikombe Cha Umoja (unity cup). The candle holder has seven candles, one black, three red and three green. The colors are black for Black people, red for their struggle and green for the hope and future that come from the struggle.” Source from: http://www.ridgenet.org/Szaflik/kwanzaa.htm
Martin Luther King, Jr. Day: “Biography: Martin Luther King, Jr.: The Man and the Dream”. Date of event: Wednesday, January 25th, 2006. Description of movie: “Rarely has one man done so much to change the politics and conscience of the nation. Like too many others, he paid the ultimate price for his beliefs.
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was one of the most loved, respected, feared and influential leaders in American history. In life, he helped transform the nation's outlook. In death, he became a martyr to the cause for which he labored. In this one-of-a-kind look at his life and work, writer/director Tom Friedman explores how Dr. King's ideas, thoughts and causes evolved in the face of the rapidly changing climate of the Civil Rights Movement. Rare footage and photographs illustrate the defining moments of his crusade, from the first stirrings of his activism in Alabama to his time as the pre-eminent voice for racial justice in America.
BIOGRAPHY® presents a remarkable portrait of courage in the face of hatred, of a man who forced change through the sheer strength of his indomitable spirit.”