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Kwanzaa
Kwanzaa () is an annual celebration of African-American culture from December 26 to January 1, culminating in a communal feast called ''Karamu'', usually on the sixth day. It was created by activist Maulana Karenga based on African harvest festival traditions from various parts of West, East, as well as Southeast Africa. Kwanzaa was first celebrated in 1966. Twenty-first-century estimates place the number of Americans who celebrate Kwanzaa between 500,000 and 2,000,000. History and etymology American black separatist Maulana Karenga created Kwanzaa in 1966 during the aftermath of the Watts riots as a non-Christian, specifically African-American holiday. Karenga said his goal was to "give black people an alternative to the existing holiday of Christmas and give black people an opportunity to celebrate themselves and their history, rather than simply imitate the practice of the dominant society." For Karenga, a figure in the Black Power movement of the 1960s and 1970s, the cre ...
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Maulana Karenga
Maulana Ndabezitha Karenga (born Ronald McKinley Everett, July 14, 1941), previously known as Ron Karenga, is an American activist, author and professor of Africana studies, best known as the creator of the pan-African and African-American holiday of Kwanzaa. Born in Parsonsburg, Maryland, to an African-American family, Karenga studied at Los Angeles City College and the University of California, Los Angeles. He was active in the Black Power movement of the 1960s, joining the Congress of Racial Equality and Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee. In 1965, Karenga and Hakim Jamal co-founded the black nationalist group US Organization, which became involved in violent clashes with the Black Panther Party by 1969. In 1971, he was convicted of felony assault, torture, and false imprisonment of women. He denied involvement and claimed the prosecution was political in nature. Karenga was imprisoned in California Men's Colony until he received parole in 1975. In 1966, Karenga not ...
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Kinara
The kinara is a seven-branched candleholder used in Kwanzaa celebrations in the United States. History Shortly before the first celebration in 1966, Maulana Karenga searched for a candle holder with seven holes in which he and the other US Organization US Organization, or Organization Us, is a Black nationalist group in the United States founded in 1965. It was established as a community organization by Hakim Jamal together with Maulana Karenga. It was a rival to the Black Panther Party in C ... members could use to celebrate the first Kwanzaa. However, absent the presence of a handcrafted kinara, two holders were broken from a Hanukkah menorah which was then used to hold the seven candles. The following year, US Organization member Buddy Rose-Aminifu crafted the first kinara. Early photographs of the first kinara show that it was of rudimentary design, being a wooden log with holes drilled into it to support the candles. Description During the week-long celebr ...
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African-American Culture
African-American culture, also known as Black American culture or Black culture in American English, refers to the cultural expressions of African Americans, either as part of or distinct from mainstream American culture. African-American/Black-American culture has been influential on American and global worldwide culture as a whole. Black-American/African American culture primarily refers to the distinct cultural expressions, traditions, and contributions of people who are descendants of those enslaved in the United States, as well as free people of color who lived in the country before 1865. This culture is rooted in a specific ethnic group and is separate from the cultures of more recent melanated (dark-skinned) immigrants from Africa, the Caribbean, or Afro-Latinos. African American culture is not simply defined by race or historical struggle but is deeply rooted in shared practices, identity, and community. African American culture encompasses many aspects, including Bla ...
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Umkhosi Wokweshwama
Umkhosi Wokweshwama ("first fruits festival"), recently also known as ''Umkhosi Woselwa'' ("calabash festival"), is the annual harvest festival of the Zulu people, observed around the December solstice. It takes place at the Enyokeni Royal Palace in Nongoma, KwaZulu-Natal, and is presided over by the Zulu King, who conducts a tasting ceremony as sacred king, closed by the dashing of a calabash to signify that the people may now enjoy the fruits of the harvest; this role was historically expanded by Shaka to have more military significance with a muster and parade. It was revived by the current king's father, the late King Goodwill Zwelithini kaBhekuzulu in 1990, after a ban by British colonial authorities following the 1879 Battle of Isandlwana and Zulu defeat in the Anglo-Zulu War (the last was held in winter 1877–78, though some claim continuity as a less elaborate event). The festival has mass participation by young men, as Umkhosi woMhlanga has by young women. There i ...
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Pan-African
Pan-Africanism is a nationalist movement that aims to encourage and strengthen bonds of solidarity between all indigenous peoples and diasporas of African ancestry. Based on a common goal dating back to the Atlantic slave trade, the Trans-Saharan slave trade, the Indian Ocean slave trade, the Red Sea slave trade, slavery in the Cape Colony (now South Africa), along with slavery in Mauritius, the movement extends beyond continental Africans with a substantial support base among the African diaspora in the Americas and Europe. Pan-Africanism is said to have its origins in the struggles of the African people against enslavement and colonization and this struggle may be traced back to the first resistance on slave ships—rebellions and suicides—through the constant plantation and colonial uprisings and the "Back to Africa" movements of the 19th century. Based on the belief that unity is vital to economic, social, and political progress, it aims to unify and uplift people ...
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Ujamaa
Ujamaa ( in Swahili language, Swahili) was a Socialism, socialist ideology that formed the basis of Julius Nyerere's social and economic Economic development, development policies in Tanzania after it gained independence from Britain in 1961. More broadly, ujamaa may mean "cooperative economics", in the sense of "local people cooperating with each other to provide for the essentials of living", or "to build and maintain our own stores, shops, and other businesses and to profit from them together". Ideology and practice Nyerere used Ujamaa as the basis for a national development project. He translated the Ujamaa concept into the institutionalization of social, economic, and political equality through the creation of a central democracy; the abolition of discrimination based on ascribed status; and the nationalization of the economy's key sectors. Ujamaa proposed a decentralized and pastoralist socialist democracy. Julius Nyerere's leadership of Tanzania commanded international ...
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Criticism Of Christianity
Criticism of Christianity has a long history which stretches back to the initial formation of the religion in the Roman Empire. Critics have challenged Christian beliefs and teachings as well as actions taken in name of the faith, from the Crusades to modern terrorism. The arguments against Christianity include the suppositions that it is a faith of violence, corruption, superstition, polytheism, homophobia, bigotry, pontification, abuses of women's rights and sectarianism. In the early years of Christianity, the Neoplatonic philosopher Porphyry emerged as one of the major critics with his book ''Against the Christians'', along with other writers like Celsus and Julian. Porphyry argued that Christianity was based on false prophecies that had not yet materialized. Following the adoption of Christianity under the Roman Empire, dissenting religious voices were gradually suppressed by both governments and ecclesiastical authorities; however Christianity did face theological crit ...
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December Solstice
The December solstice, also known as the southern solstice, is the solstice that occurs each December – typically on 21 December, but may vary by one day in either direction according to the Gregorian calendar. In the Northern Hemisphere, the December solstice is the winter solstice (the day with the shortest period of daylight), whilst in the Southern Hemisphere it is the summer solstice (the day with the longest period of daylight). During December solstice, the Sun is directly over the Tropic of Capricorn, located in the Southern Hemisphere. The December solstice is often seen as the middle of winter in the Northern Hemisphere and the middle of summer in the Southern Hemisphere. Solar year The December-solstice solar year is the solar year based on the December solstice. It is thus the length of time between adjacent December solstices. The length of the December-solstice year has been relatively stable between 6000 BC and AD 2000, in the range of 49 minutes 30 ...
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Zulu People
Zulu people (; ) are a native people of Southern Africa of the Nguni people, Nguni. The Zulu people are the largest Ethnic groups in South Africa, ethnic group and nation in South Africa, living mainly in the province of KwaZulu-Natal. They originated from Nguni communities who took part in the Bantu migrations over millennia. As the clans integrated, the rulership of Shaka brought success to the Zulu nation due to his improved military tactics and organization. Zulus take pride in their ceremonies such as the Umhlanga (ceremony)#South Africa, Umhlanga, or Reed Dance, and their various forms of beadwork. The art and skill of beadwork take part in the identification of Zulu people and act as a form of communication and dedication to the nation and specific traditions. Today, the Zulu people are predominantly Christian, but have created a Religious syncretism, syncretic religion that is combined with the Zulu's prior belief systems. History of the people of Zulu Origins Th ...
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Mental Health Of Jesus
The question of whether the historical Jesus was in good mental health is a q:Mental health of Jesus, subject of consideration for multiple psychologists, philosophers, historians, and writers. The first person, after several other attempts at tackling the subject, who broadly and thoroughly questioned the mental health of Jesus was French psychologist Charles Binet-Sanglé, the chief physician of Paris and author of a four-volume work (''The Madness of Jesus'', 1908–1915). This view finds both supporters and opponents. Opinions challenging the sanity of Jesus The assessment of the sanity of Jesus first occurs in the gospels. The Gospel of Mark reports the opinion of members of his family who believe that Jesus "is beside himself." Some psychiatrists, religious scholars and writers explain that, according to the gospels, Jesus's family (Mark 3:21), some followers (John 7:20, see also John 11:41–53), and contemporaries, at various points in time, regarded him as delusional, De ...
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Christians
A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the world. The words '' Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title (), a translation of the Biblical Hebrew term '' mashiach'' () (usually rendered as ''messiah'' in English). While there are diverse interpretations of Christianity which sometimes conflict, they are united in believing that Jesus has a unique significance. The term ''Christian'' used as an adjective is descriptive of anything associated with Christianity or Christian churches, or in a proverbial sense "all that is noble, and good, and Christ-like." According to a 2011 Pew Research Center survey, there were 2.3 billion Christians around the world, up from about 600 million in 1910. Today, about 37% of all Christians live in the Americas, about 26% live in Europe, 24% live in sub-Saharan Afric ...
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