Parenting Today's African American Children

Living the Kwanzaa Principles Year-Round

Faith and Creativity. Two principles of Kwanzaa that we definitely practice all year long. They both affirm and sustain our family. Read this great article from the blog of the National association of Black Storytellers!

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 Kwanzaa kinara--Virgin Islands

Imani (Faith): To believe with all our hearts in our people, our parents, our teachers, our leaders, and the righteousness and victory of our struggle.

Black people have always leaned on their faith when faced with the horrific conditions of enslavement, Jim Crow, and the Red Summer of 1919.  The Red Summer took place when Black soldiers returned home from their tour of duty after World War I.   It was very ironic that Black soldiers fought and died for a country that denied them basic human rights. Many times they were subjected to segregated and inhumane conditions while serving in the United States military.

After their exposure to other cultures in the world and experiencing the horrors of war, Black soldiers returned home as different people. They wanted equal treatment under the law and the same rights as all other Americans.  Many Black soldiers were lynched. Sometimes these…

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One response to “Living the Kwanzaa Principles Year-Round”

  1. Brian G Avatar
    Brian G

    I read this story and was so moved by this. What horrible, evil works were done to our black fighting men in uniform after going through so much and fighting for the USA and surviving on the battle fields of Europe, only to return home to be humiliated and murdered even while still wearing their uniforms. Awful actions and true horror, I have been thinking so much lately of my Great-Grandfather who was of mixed race, part Black, part Polish, part Irish and my Great-Great Grandmother, his mother who was also racially mixed, part Black and part Irish. What they had to endure, the disgusting names that they were called, how they were treated and made to feel “less than” and yet, they had this beautiful faith to help them carry on each and every day. A faith that was handed down through the Maternal side of my family, a faith that carried my family through out so many ups and downs in their lives and through the decades of living. A the total unconditional love and unshakeable belief that was there even at the end of their lives. I feel that I have also had that gift of belief handed to me and even though I may not attend Mass or church like they did, I have always believed and held deep convictions of faith within my whole being especially in my heart and that has sustained me and raised me up even when I have been at my lowest ebb in life. I feel that I have my Great-Great Grandmother and my Great-Grandfather to thank for instilling that faith, the faith of their ancestors, even though mixed racially, they had that connection and I am proud and happy to say so do I. Merry Christmas, Joyous Kwanzaa and A Blessed, Healthy and Happy New Year To All My Brothers and Sisters Everywhere. I Love You !!!

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