YOUNGSTOWN Annual Jabali celebrates African culture

The celebration's name means 'rock of Africa.'
By JOHN W. GOODWIN JR.
VINDICATOR STAFF WRITER
YOUNGSTOWN -- African culture took center stage Friday night at Youngstown State University for the fourth annual Jabali African Cultural Celebration.
More than 150 people poured into the Chestnut Room in Kilcawley Center for the celebration, which included African-inspired food, dance, music and a lecture on the true meaning of "cool."
Dr. Victor Wan-Tatah, event organizer, said the celebration's name, "Jabali," means "rock of Africa." He said the concept of the rock as it is used in the celebration should be seen as a base for all black Americans.
"Just as the rock is the foundation of any well-built house, it is the reaffirmation of the African experience and spirit," said Wan-Tatah. "It is the source and essence of all humanity."
Foundation for lives
Wan-Tatah said it is from this rock that Africans and black Americans alike build a spiritual base and foundation for their lives.
Wan-Tatah said the purpose of the Jabali Celebration is to bring the true African experience to those living in the Mahoning Valley in one program complete with food, entertainment and intellectual enrichment.
"We have come here to celebrate life the way it was lived by our grandparents and ancestors," he said.
The experience was complemented with a menu including curried macaroni salad, red beans and rice, collard greens, jollof rice, Creole bread pudding and sweet potato pie.
The YSU African Student Union performed several African dance selections. Sam Addo-Quaye, African Student Union president, said each dance had its own meaning. One dance, he said, represented freedom, another represented a man who misses a loved one and the third expressed how hands and feet can be used to convey a message in dance.
Influence on pop culture
The African Soul Dance Group of Cleveland also performed.
Keynote speaker Dr. Debora Johnson-Ross, a professor at McDaniel College in Maryland, spoke on the African presence in pop culture and the roots of "being cool" in the black community. She said that many people do not realize the influence of Africa in pop culture.
"The concept of cool is the most enduring African concept in American culture," she said. "The original cool dealt with spirituality, character, treating people with respect and carrying oneself in a certain way."
Johnson-Ross said blacks in American culture have kept the outward expressions of being cool, but must reincorporate the inner meanings of the concept.
"I am not saying that these characteristics do not exist in the African-American community. What I am saying is that those attributes are no longer thought of as being cool," she said.
As an example of the outward expressions, Johnson-Ross spoke about the significance of hairstyles and headdresses to Africans and black Americans. She also mentioned popular dances and nicknames used by sports figures, such as "Air" Jordan and "Sugar Ray" Leonard, all to denote being cool. She said to keep those expressions is good, but the original meanings -- reflecting character -- must also be remembered.
Wan-Tatah said he hopes those in attendance remember the African-inspired lecture, food and entertainment in a way that leaves each person waiting for more next year.
jgoodwin@vindy.com