As The Current nears the Holiday break, we’d like to highlight one of the many celebrations occurring around this time. The Current’s highlight is none other than Kwanzaa’s welcoming of the 2025 New Year!
It is an annual celebration of African-American culture that occurs from December 26 to January 1. Each day, Kwanzaa focuses on one of its seven principles. On the first day, the principle of black unity is celebrated, and family and friends gather to light a candle. For every night, a different candle is lit that represents the other six principles of Kwanzaa: self-determination, collective responsibility, cooperative economics, purpose, creativity, and faith.
The communal feast, on the sixth day of the week, is known as Karamu. Karamu features traditional foods such as jollof rice and collard greens. Karamu honors the renewal and resilience that Kwanzaa celebrates and symbolizes. Many families honor this through the decoration of their homes and the passing of a unity cup.
The holiday was created by Maulana Karenga. He aimed to create an alternative to Christmas for African-Americans by finding a unique way to celebrate their history and culture, rather than imitating the dominant society. Its name stems from the Kiswahili phrase matunda ya kwanza, which translates to “first fruit.”
As Karenga hoped for, Kwanzaa is a time for bonding, joy, and repose among the African-American community. As time unfolds, the first day of Kwanzaa is nearing, which means there’s only a few days before Kwanzaa welcomes the 2025 New Year.
