# Do you know anyone who celebrates Kwanzaa? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [December 30, 2012, 5:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-know-anyone-who-celebrates-kwanzaa/645550 "2012-12-30T05:12:28Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![foolsguinea](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foolsguinea/32/14751_2.png) [@foolsguinea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/foolsguinea)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2012, 5:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-know-anyone-who-celebrates-kwanzaa/645550/1 "2012-12-30T05:12:28Z")
Sometimes I hear about Kwanzaa, a [del]holiday[/del] week-long celebration invented by an atheist black nationalist for some atheist black nationalist reason or another. I don’t think I really know anyone who observes it. I was doing some research on it, and apparently it’s not commonly observed among anyone. Do you do anything for it? Know anyone who does? (I’m talking about the North American version, not the Brazilian one, but if you want to talk about other African Diaspora holidays, that’s fine too.) ---
**Author:** ![monstro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ba9def/32.png) [@monstro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/monstro)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2012, 5:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-know-anyone-who-celebrates-kwanzaa/645550/2 "2012-12-30T05:16:40Z")
My mother and father seem go to a Kwanzaa party every year. I have attended a couple of events, though not any time recently. ---
**Author:** ![alphaboi867](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alphaboi867/32/3898_2.png) [@alphaboi867](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alphaboi867)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2012, 5:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-know-anyone-who-celebrates-kwanzaa/645550/3 "2012-12-30T05:44:14Z")
No, but as a child I didn’t know African-Americans celebrated Christmas. See I didn’t know any Black people and every children show would always show the token Black family celebrating Kwanzaa. :smack: ---
**Author:** ![Two\_Many\_Cats](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8dc957/32.png) [@Two\_Many\_Cats](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Two_Many_Cats)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2012, 7:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-know-anyone-who-celebrates-kwanzaa/645550/4 "2012-12-30T19:59:50Z")
I haven’t been out much lately, but I’ve just realized that this is the first I’ve heard Kwanzaa mentioned this year. That’s a change from past years. So, yeah, is Kwanzaa still around? ---
**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2012, 10:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-know-anyone-who-celebrates-kwanzaa/645550/5 "2012-12-30T22:30:30Z")
None that I know of, and all the black people I know celebrate Christmas or Hannukah. Or both. But not Kwanzaa. ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_A.Robrin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sam_a.robrin/32/14497_2.png) [@Sam\_A.Robrin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_A.Robrin)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2012, 11:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-know-anyone-who-celebrates-kwanzaa/645550/6 "2012-12-30T23:25:31Z")
I honestly always got the impression that the whole idea was cooked up by race-baiters just to have one more thing to criticize white people for not doing … or doing wrong … or doing right, but with the wrong attitude … or–well, you know how race-baiters are! ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2012, 11:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-know-anyone-who-celebrates-kwanzaa/645550/7 "2012-12-30T23:34:07Z")
Must be [that time of year](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=633737) again. ---
**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2012, 11:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-know-anyone-who-celebrates-kwanzaa/645550/8 "2012-12-30T23:42:36Z")
Well, it’d be kind of an odd question to ask in June. ---
**Author:** ![lisacurl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/41988e/32.png) [@lisacurl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lisacurl)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2012, 11:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-know-anyone-who-celebrates-kwanzaa/645550/9 "2012-12-30T23:48:15Z")
> [@Sam\_A.Robrin](#): > > I honestly always got the impression that the whole idea was cooked up by race-baiters just to have one more thing to criticize white people for not doing … or doing wrong … or doing right, but with the wrong attitude … or–well, you know how race-baiters are! I only have a very casual understanding of Kwanzaa, but I cannot imagine the creators of the holiday expected “white people” to be involved in it at all. But please feel free to tell us some more about “how race-baiters are.” ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [December 30, 2012, 11:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-know-anyone-who-celebrates-kwanzaa/645550/10 "2012-12-30T23:56:06Z")
None of my friends or acquaintances celebrate it. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2012, 12:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-know-anyone-who-celebrates-kwanzaa/645550/11 "2012-12-31T00:04:07Z")
Locally, sometimes a school will put up some decorations or something, but no one I know actually "celebrates " it. ---
**Author:** ![Blackberry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ecd19e/32.png) [@Blackberry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Blackberry)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2012, 2:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-know-anyone-who-celebrates-kwanzaa/645550/12 "2012-12-31T02:17:36Z")
> [@Sam\_A.Robrin](#): > > I honestly always got the impression that the whole idea was cooked up by race-baiters just to have one more thing to criticize white people for not doing … or doing wrong … or doing right, but with the wrong attitude … or–well, you know how race-baiters are! Or maybe they just invented it to give white people something to look stupid about by calling them race-baiters. And no, I don’t know of anyone who celebrates it. ---
**Author:** ![crypto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b3f665/32.png) [@crypto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/crypto)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2012, 3:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-know-anyone-who-celebrates-kwanzaa/645550/13 "2012-12-31T03:21:23Z")
I know of no one that celebrates Kwanzaa, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t celebrated. It just doesn’t seem to have taken hold in main stream culture. I know this will probalby draw jeers from the peanut gallery, but Hannukah is NOT celebrated by my two most religions Jewish friends. They both have told me it is an invention by Jewish people who have kids who live in a Christmas culture. Apparently, it gives Jews the ability to give gifts, but that isn’t or wasn’t the initial intent. I don’t know if this is true, but for two Jewish people to tell me this independently of each other seems somewhat convincing. They are also the two most observant Jews I know, so maybe that has something to do with it. Anyone know if there is any truth to this? I don’t have any doubts that my two friends believe what they believe, but does anyone out here know if this is true or not? ---
**Author:** ![twickster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ec9cab/32.png) [@twickster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/twickster)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2012, 3:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-know-anyone-who-celebrates-kwanzaa/645550/14 "2012-12-31T03:23:04Z")
Since this is a poll, moved to IMHO from Cafe Society. ---
**Author:** ![chiroptera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/df705f/32.png) [@chiroptera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chiroptera)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2012, 3:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-know-anyone-who-celebrates-kwanzaa/645550/15 "2012-12-31T03:58:06Z")
No. I have a friend who sings in an annual Kwanzaa church celebration (she also sings with that same church in non- Kwanzaa , traditional -Christmas events) but she doesn’t celebrate it herself. ---
**Author:** ![Baker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bb73d2/32.png) [@Baker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baker)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2012, 4:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-know-anyone-who-celebrates-kwanzaa/645550/16 "2012-12-31T04:25:18Z")
I don’t know anyone who celebrates Kwanzaa, but then I’m white. Sometimes the newspaper mentions it, but not this year. A number of local black churches do hold a service called Watch Night, which is rooted in the history of the Emancipation Proclamation. It’s said slaves gathered to hear about impending declared freedom, on 12/31/1862, one hundred and fifty years ago. > **['Watch Nights,' A New Year's Celebration Of Emancipation](https://www.npr.org/2012/12/29/167905308/watch-nights-honor-emancipation-proclamations-anniversary)** > > On Dec. 31, 1862, African-Americans and abolitionists waited for word — via telegraph, newspaper or word of mouth — that the Emancipation Proclamation had been issued. A New Year's Eve tradition marks the anniversary of President Lincoln's actions to... ---
**Author:** ![Hippy\_Hollow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hippy_hollow/32/4841_2.png) [@Hippy\_Hollow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hippy_Hollow)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2012, 6:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-know-anyone-who-celebrates-kwanzaa/645550/17 "2012-12-31T06:28:10Z")
I mean, my Progressive Black Collective and I often talk about Kwanzaa, discussing the days (I think today was Nia, “purpose”), and even occasionally lighting the menorah-like candles. Does that count? ---
**Author:** ![foolsguinea](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foolsguinea/32/14751_2.png) [@foolsguinea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/foolsguinea)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2012, 9:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-know-anyone-who-celebrates-kwanzaa/645550/18 "2012-12-31T09:16:41Z")
I think that counts,\*\* Hippy Hollow.\*\* Discussing the days and lighting the candles, sounds like an observance of Kwanzaa to me. ---
**Author:** ![Nzinga\_Seated](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/b5ac83/32.png) [@Nzinga\_Seated](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nzinga_Seated)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2012, 9:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-know-anyone-who-celebrates-kwanzaa/645550/19 "2012-12-31T09:19:09Z")
I have been to some ceremonies with some of my Afrocentric friends, but I don’t know that many people who celebrate. I love the idea of Kwanzaa, but I am too lazy to learn all the rules. I’ve been trying to learn those same Swahili words for decades. They just don’t stick. I only remember Imani is faith. ---
**Author:** ![Diceman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/22d042/32.png) [@Diceman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diceman)\ **Post date:** [December 31, 2012, 7:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-know-anyone-who-celebrates-kwanzaa/645550/20 "2012-12-31T19:26:14Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > Locally, sometimes a school will put up some decorations or something, but no one I know actually "celebrates " it. It does seem like it’s mostly schools and other institutions who make a big deal about Kwanzaa. I can’t say that I’ve ever known anyone who said they celebrate it. Then again, I’m white, and Kwanzaa was invented by Afrocentric (translation: racist) blacks, so any that did celebrate Kwanzaa probably wouldn’t be hanging around me to begin with. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-know-anyone-who-celebrates-kwanzaa/645550.md?page=2)