ERNIE BROWN Black cultural days focus on history, principles

December begins a busy time for me at the newspaper from a black cultural perspective.
In the middle of this month, several press releases concerning the black American cultural holiday Kwanzaa will find their way to my desk.
Toward the end of the month, I will start receiving press releases about Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. activities planned around his birthday in January. Remember, the third Monday in January is a national holiday honoring the slain civil rights leader.
And, toward the middle of January, reminders will be sent to me requesting newspaper coverage of numerous events scheduled in February to celebrate Black History Month.
These activities are important in the black community because they foster a sense of pride in the accomplishments, traditions and culture of a people who, at one time in this country, were considered as property to be bought and sold as the owner saw fit.
Kwanzaa: This year marks the 35th celebration of Kwanzaa, which intertwines African traditions with black American customs. It is usually celebrated from Dec. 26 through Jan. 1.
Dr. Maulena Karenga, a California professor, started the first weeklong holiday in December 1966, for his family and friends in Los Angeles.
An invaluable resource I keep at my desk is a book by Dorothy Winbush Riley called "The Complete Kwanzaa: Celebrating Our Cultural Harvest." The author is a librarian and has been an administrator in the Detroit school system for more than 20 years.
Riley has researched the holiday thoroughly, and I will quote from her 387-page book to show why many blacks take the time to celebrate Kwanzaa.
There are seven principles to Kwanzaa called the Nguzo Saba, which Karenga expressed in Swahili, an East African language. They are umoja (unity), kujichagulia (self-determination), ujima (collective work and responsibility), ujamaa (cooperative economics), nia (purpose), kuumba (creativity) and imani (faith).
Seven candles are lighted during the week. The candles -- three red, three green and one black -- are placed in a candleholder called a kinara, which represents the African ancestry of black Americans. The black candle, which symbolizes umoja, is lighted Dec. 26.
The three green candles, representing kujichagulia, ujima and ujamaa, are placed to the right of the umoja candle, and the three red candles, representing nia, kuumba and imani, are placed to the left. During the week, one candle, representing each principle, is lighted.
The symbolic colors of red, black and green are from the flag created by Marcus Garvey, the Jamaican-U.S. black-nationalist leader who founded the Universal Negro Improvement Association in 1914. His newspaper, Negro World (1919-33), advocated an independent black economy within the framework of white capitalism, and he established black-run businesses.
Observances: Kwanzaa is a family tradition, but there are public observances in the Youngstown area as well. In past years, New Bethel Baptist Church on Hillman Street has had Kwanzaa services.
Our paper and other publications will carry notices of local Kwanzaa observations. If you have the chance, try to attend one or several.
In Riley's book, Karenga says, "The core principles of Kwanzaa . . . are a necessary minimum set of principles by which black people must live in order to begin to rescue and reconstruct our history and lives."
Unity, self-determination, collective work and responsibility, cooperative economics, purpose, creativity and faith -- values and principles that are needed not only for one week but for a lifetime.
Happy Kwanzaa.
ebrown@vindy.com