Kwanzaa Themes About History, Origins, Strength Artistic Director Of Seattle Events Hopes Festival Can Serve As A Bridge To The Past

Kwanzaa, the seven-day celebration of black culture and values, begins Thursday as millions of blacks reflect on their heritage.

Kwanzaa, celebrated by about 18 million American blacks, was devised 30 years ago by Maulana Karenga, professor and chairman of the Department of Black Studies at California State University, Long Beach.

The word Kwanzaa is derived from the Swahili word meaning “first fruits of the harvest.” Its creation was meant in part to address the historic gap created by slavery and the violent separation of American blacks from their African heritage.

But the study was particularly troubling for Pat Chandler and Ree Perris, two women involved in preparations for the coming celebration of Kwanzaa in Seattle.

Chandler, project director for the African American Heritage Museum, recalls the discomfort she felt reading about slavery in American history books.

“I hated that unit of history,” she said. “You were a ‘slave,’ and then after the Civil War, you were a ‘newly freed slave.’ You never got to get rid of that. It was always in there somewhere.”

Perris, artistic director for a series of public Kwanzaa events in Seattle, agreed.

“I think it also has to do with self-esteem, which is another crisis in this country, with our children today,” Perris said. “If you have no basis to know where you come from, how could you possibly have a clue as to where you’re going?”

“Dr. Karenga said a people can never move forward into prosperity unless they look backward to their ancestors,” Perris said. “But if you look back and there’s nothing there, what then?”

Each of the seven days represents the ideals of unity, self-determination, collective work and responsibility, cooperative economics, purpose, creativity and faith.

Kwanzaa can’t restore a denied heritage to African Americans, but it might serve as a bridge to the past, said Perris.

“After Alex Haley’s book ‘Roots’ came out, and after the television series, people rushed to find out what their family tree was, where they came from. We should all be able to go back seven, eight, nine generations. Unfortunately, that is not our reality,” Perris said.

“If you could trace your great-great-great-great-grandfather back to Africa, back to a tribe, that gives me chill bumps. That would be a wonderful feeling to be able to say, ‘I come from greatness,’ as opposed to ‘I come from slavery.”’

Kwanzaa doesn’t provide that consolation, at least not directly, but it is important, nonetheless, Chandler said. “We have a responsibility to the generations behind us and to some of those in front of us to reorient ourselves about our history and our origins and become a stronger people.”

Critics have said the celebration is meant to counter the white ideal of Christmas, or a contrived attempt to forge “a usable black past.”

But Chandler, of the heritage museum, responds that is one of the central points of Kwanzaa.

“That’s part of the purpose of it,” Chandler said. “This is African American. It didn’t come from Africa. It’s an African American celebration of the purpose and meaning of life, of unity and of family.”