It’s definitely not an obscure holiday. Everyone knows the word (part of a Swahili phrase meaning “first fruits”) but it’s not the most mainstream one. Most likely, you didn’t learn about it in school. It didn’t get the Rugrats treatment like Hanukkah or Passover. And since it falls at the end of the year, its significance gets lost in a sea of jingle bells, menorahs and sequins. But we at College Candy refuse to let your brains rot in your winter boredom blahs, so we’re here to break down Kwanzaa for you.

What is it?

Kwanzaa is a week-long holiday, starting December 26 and going through January 6. It is a celebration of all African culture, but is primarily observed by African-Americans.

What is the story behind it?
Kwanzaa was created in 1966 by CSU-Long Beach professor Maulana Karenga. He was an active proponent of Pan-Africanism. This is a philosophy born in the 18th century. When Africans were sold into slavery, they were completely stripped of their culture. Over generations, it became difficult, especially for African-Americans, to trace their heritage back to their home country. Pan-Africanism seeks to unite all people of African descent around the world into a large global community by highlighting their shared historical experiences and cultural norms. In the 1960s, Pan-Africanism made a resurgence in the United States in conjunction with the civil rights movement, and Dr. Karenga established Kwanzaa as a way to embed Pan-Africanism into African-American culture. Kwanzaa was also rooted in a desire to give African-Americans a holiday of their own.

How is Kwanzaa celebrated?

There are a lot of ways to celebrate it. Some use the Hanukkah model of having a large, multi-stemmed candle. A Kwanzaa candle consists of seven stems, each stem representing one of the seven principles, and each night is dedicated to celebrating a principle. Other people may choose to observe it on just one day, organizing a big community celebration involving traditional African song, dance, and food.

So Kwanzaa is not religious in nature?

No, Kwanzaa is solely cultural. It is not meant to infringe upon any religious practices. Kwanzaa emphasizes the significance of seven principles: unity, self-determination, faith,collective work and responsibility, creativity, purpose, and cooperative economics, secular values that do not compete with or offend any religious customs.

Does every African-American celebrate Kwanzaa?

No, definitely not. Kwanzaa has actually faded in popularity over the last thirty years, as the Pan-African movement lost steam. Estimates say between one and five percent of African-Americans celebrate Kwanzaa. The number of people who celebrate Kwanzaa worldwide is also super sketchy, though some studies claim 30 million people celebrate worldwide (to put that number in perspective, there are over a billion black people in the world.) Kwanzaa is actively denounced by many African-Americans, because of its founder. Dr. Karenga is an incredibly polarizing figure. He was the leader of a black nationalist group (some call it a cult). When two women disagreed with one of his ideas, he assaulted and tortured them. He was imprisoned for four years, from 1971 to 1975. Many people are wary to condone any of his ideas as a result of his incredibly questionable (and felonious) behavior.

While Kwanzaa is not the most thriving holiday, it is extremely important to acknowledge its existence. It is a direct response to the systemic, historic oppression of African culture around the world. Its premise that being African is beautiful and worthy of celebration and joy is a necessary message that deserves a place in mainstream dialogue.

This

Two young boys in the Czech Republic were kept for months in a basement dungeon by their mother. Not only were they sexually and physically abused, naked in their own urine and chained up, they were also forced to cut themselves. Why? So that their mother could feed their raw flesh to their relatives.

The entire torture was conducted in accordance with text messages from the leader of their “religious” group, the Grail Movement. This leader is referred to only as “The Doctor.”

And this is a true story.

The mother, who is currently on trial, now claims that she was brainwashed. She says she’s sorry and doesn’t know how she could have done such things.

I don’t buy it for one second. You know how this was discovered? A neighbor caught it on his baby TV monitor. According to various articles, that is because the mother had her own TV monitor hooked up so that she could watch the boys while they were in agony whenever she felt like it. To me, there is no coming back from that.

Now the questions seem to be (1) will the court buy the “brainwashed” excuse, and (2) how far is a religious organization allowed to go in the name of their beliefs?

Here in America, we are very careful to be 100% PC about religion. We want everyone to think we have tolerance coming out the wazoo.

But in this blogger’s humble opinion, the need to be PC often comes out of an inherent bigotry. The need to be so careful of a group’s supposed collective feelings stems from a discomfort with the person’s own feelings toward that group.

So when honor killings happen in Syria or Haiti (where honor killings are legal), we say, oh, that’s just a part of their culture. When civil wars break out in the Democratic Republic of the Congo or Rwanda and thousands of civilians are brutally murdered, we say, we should let them work that out for themselves.

I do not believe that the United States should waltz in and save the world. I think we should solve our own problems first. I am not advocating US-as-protector-of-the-world.

What I am saying is that we should not pardon atrocious acts because they are “cultural” or “religious.” When harm comes to helpless people, we all have the responsibility to stand up for them and not hide behind the dubious veil of supposed “cultural differences.”

I hope this woman who tortured and cannibalized her children in the name of religion is locked up for the rest of her life. And, more importantly, I hope the two children are placed into stable homes with people who will love them and care for them and nurse them back into some semblance of mental health.

Dear Katie,

Remember when you used to smile? I mean, really smile. Not that Tom-Gets-Mad-If-I-Don’t-Grin smile. Remember when you dressed your age and actually spoke?

Where did those days go? Has Tom done something to your brain? He hasn’t lobotomized you, has he? I wouldn’t put it past that guy to have a complete lobotomizing room in his basement. Has he given you shock therapy? I know he wanted to buy his own ultrasound machine at one point, maybe he just had them throw the shocks in for free?

I was looking as some pictures of you recently, and I’ve noticed that all the joy has seeped away from your face. I’ve also noticed that you’ve started to dress like my mom—if my mom was super rich. This unsettles me because I’m pretty sure we’re the same age.

You know, I was never your biggest fan (your cutesy act never really worked for me on Dawson’s Creek, and after that I couldn’t ever picture you as any other character), but I feel like it’s my duty as a female, as a woman who knows what it’s like to have dreams, to urge you to break free of the crazy bastard you married and run far, far away.

I bet he tells you you’re career will be ruined if you ever leave him. At night, while he sits by the fire thumbing through old Scientology textbooks and you’re waiting out those required ‘being a wife to Tom Cruise’ hours, I bet he tells you that leaving him would be useless. Much like a cartoon villain, he tries to suppress your desire to live. He may even sing a song about these evil mind games, a la Disney.

But I’m writing this to tell you that it’s not true! What you don’t know is that the country is rooting for you. Women everywhere are secretly horrified at what’s happened. We can’t imagine what it must be like to be linked for all eternity to a man who’s obviously gay and crazy, but so rich he can almost single-handedly keep a weird cult in mainstream religious society. It must be frightening, Katie.

Escaping can happen. Mexico. Australia. There are places. Honestly. I know a guy in the Mafia who can help you out. Call me. You don’t mind Staten Island, right?

Be strong, Katie. And always remember that a true husband never requires separate beds—or that you wear a basketball under your shirt to convince the world of the power of his sperm.