One holiday tradition my mom always wanted to do with us but never did is celebrate Kwanzaa. She did educate me on what it is and what everything means, but we never got around to ever doing it. But now that I’m starting my own family, I wanted to do celebrate this year (even if Baby won’t remember.) That way we’ll be ready to celebrate it the way we should when Baby is bigger.
So, for 2023 I decided to celebrate Kwanzaa through literature. I’ll be listing the principles for each day along with a book that matches the principles. If you can think of other titles that match the principles, tell me, I’d love to discuss.
Day 3 is Ujima. It means Collective Work and Responsibility. The candle order is the Black one and then the two farthest left red ones. The process is much of the same, light the other two candles in order and then light the two far left red ones. The person who lights it then makes a statement about Collective Work and Responsibility. For me, that means creating and making a sense of community. This year I’ve been working on my community at work. As a librarian I’ve been fighting many battles with those that are actively trying to censor books and censor us. These last few years we’ve had to fight so many individuals, their beliefs, and their constant book challenges. Instead of just giving them what they want, librarians and publishers across the country have had to come together and take collective action for those marginalized authors and readers that will potentially be harmed. We’re fighting to continue to keep them on the shelves so that those that need those materials can find them.
The book I thought about first that reminded me of uplifting their community was:
I immediately thought of this novel in verse that I read earlier this year because of the main character. She has chronic anxiety and that makes it hard for her to leave the house. But at the time, there’s been some protests happening for Black people that have been harmed that her best friend is giving her updates on. She wants to help, but how can she do that without leaving? She begins using social media to get involved by helping to organize. She showed that you can always help in large and small ways, in your own way.
What about you? What books do you think of when you think of Ujima or Collective Work and Responsibility? Do you think of this one as well? Let me know in the comments!