Last Holiday, Kwanzaa

The last stop on our journey of the holidays is Kwanzaa. Like Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, is celebrated over a span of a few days, seven to be exact. The celebration begins on December 26 and ends on January 1. It was created by Dr. Maulana Karenga in 1966 and has been celebrated with each passing year since then.

Kwanzaa celebrates what is known as the Seven Principles of Kwanzaa. These include; unity, self determination, collective work and responsibility, cooperative economics, purpose, creativity and faith. Each day of Kwanzaa is dedicated to one of these principles.

Like Hanukkah one of the traditions of the holiday is to light a series of candles, one on each day. Kwanzaa celebrators light a kinara, which consists of three red candles on the left, three green candles on the right and a black candle in the middle. Each candle symbolizes one of the seven principles, the red and green candles are lit alternately starting from the outermost candle. The black candle symbolizes the African race, the red symbolizes African bloodshed and the green represents African land.

Like Christmas, Kwanzaa celebrators take part in decorating their home for this holiday. Decorations use the three colors of the candles in the kinara, red, black and green. Decorations include; African art, baskets, harvest symbols and cloth patterns. Like with the other two holidays, it's all about each families traditions and how they make the holiday special and unique for them. Jessica Gordon, 21, celebrated the holiday in her childhood.

From Kwanzaa

Gordon explains the traditions that her family practiced during the holiday. Each night a new family member was the spokes person for the principle that was being expressed.



Although, Gordon practiced this religion when she was younger she no longer celebrates the holiday. After speaking to a few people, I found that many of them celebrated when they were younger and no longer do.



Gordon explains whether or not she will celebrate Kwanzaa with her family she will have someday. She explains it depends on the values and principles of her future husband.



This concludes my exploration of Hanukkah, Christmas and Kwanzaa. Despite having multiple differences, each embraces the traditions that each family has to make it their own and unique.