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Alderwoman At-Large Kesha Gibson-Carter to announce 3rd Annual Kwanzaa Krawl and 39th Annual Citywide Celebration
SAVANNAH (Dec. 22) – Alderwoman At-Large Kesha Gibson-Carter will present the 3rd annual Kwanzaa Krawl, taking place at various restaurants throughout the City nightly at 7 p.m. beginning Monday, Dec. 26 through Sunday, Jan. 1. Organizers are excited to announce Kwanzaa Krawl expansion to include Pooler and Tybee Island restaurants as well as Savannah breakfast and dessert locations.
This weeklong event will showcase local restaurants, artists, and vendors who help make the Savannah African-American culture one-of-a-kind. Residents and friends are encouraged to bring their families out to partake in the celebration. There will be kid-friendly activities available each night. Donations and proceeds collected throughout the week will benefit Save Our Youth Savannah.
Each night, a restaurant will serve as the host site; while a selection of local elected leaders will be on-site to greet and engage guests. In addition, local historians and speakers will offer expressions for each principle and the Savannah Show Stoppers will perform a line dance. The Kwanzaa Krawl Kick-off event will be held at the Vintage Special Event Center, 980 Industry Dr. on Sunday, Dec. 25 at 2 p.m.
Kwanzaa is a heritage holiday that celebrates peace and unity in the African-American community—a time to collectively uplift the culture and history. The holiday is defined by a set of shared beliefs that can be recognized by anyone from all walks of life.
More than 50 years ago, Kwanzaa was created in response to civil unrest among African-Americans in California. Thus the goal of the holiday is to bring African-Americans together as a collective community.
Amidst Savannah’s rising violent crime and homicide cases in 2020, Alderwoman Gibson-Carter identified an opportunity to build on the community’s annual holiday by amplifying the principles of Kwanzaa. This was done to remind our young men and boys of their value by; promoting peace, evoking love, and ultimately helping them understand the responsibility they have to our ancestors, who fought for so many of the freedoms they enjoy today.
Co-Organizer and historian, Dr. Amir Jamal Touré, will be joined by other local storytellers, lecturers, poets, authors, and teachers to include:
They will usher in the spirit of the holiday, by offering demonstrations of one of the seven principles to include:
1. Umoja: Unity - to strive for and maintain unity in the family, community, nation, and race.
2. Kujichagulia: Self-Determination - to define ourselves, name ourselves, create for ourselves, and speak for ourselves.
3. Ujima: Collective Work and Responsibility - to build and maintain our community together and make our brothers’ and sisters’ problems our problems and solve them together.
4. Ujamaa: Cooperative Economics - to build and maintain our own stores, shops, and other businesses and to profit from them together.
5. Nia: Purpose - to make our collective vocation the building and developing of our community to restore our people to their traditional greatness.
6. Kuumba: Creativity - to always do as much as we can, in the way we can, to leave our community more beautiful and beneficial than we inherited it.
7. Imani: Faith - to believe with all our heart in our people, our parents, our teachers, our leaders, and the righteousness and victory of our struggle.
Like most of our community’s heritage events, all are invited, and encouraged to support the restaurants, by purchasing a meal and/or patronizing vendors.
Guests are asked to follow COVID restrictions and guidelines, as well as participate in onsite screening and testing activity.
Kwanzaa Krawl Itinerary:
Day 1
Monday, Dec. 26
(Umoja-Unity)
Kreole Kitchen
1800 E. Victory Dr.
912.777.5884
Tybee Island, begins at 3:30 p.m.
North Beach Grill
33 Meddin Dr.
912.786.4442
Day 2
Tuesday, Dec. 27
(Kujichagulia-Self Determination)
2 Chefs
2005-07 Martin Luther King, Jr.
912.349.7435
Day 3
Wednesday, Dec. 28
Ujima-Collective Work & Responsibility
Liquid Cafe
10201 Abercorn St.
912.777.5663
Pooler, begins at 8 p.m.
Chocolate Martini Bar
1 N. Godley Station
912.348.2100
Day 4
Thursday, Dec. 29
Ujamaa-Cooperative Economics
Kool Vibes
4501 Montgomery St.
912.499.5665
Day 5
Friday, Dec. 30
Nia-Purpose
Odyssey 2.0
65 W. Fairmont Ave.
912.777.4033
Day 6
Saturday, Dec. 31
Kuumba-Creativity
520 Tavern
8820 Abercorn St.
912. 438.6191
Day 7
Saturday, Jan. 1
Imani-Faith
Unforgettable Bakery & Deli
238 Eisenhower Dr.
912.355.6160
A culmination event will be held at Ms. Polly Cake Giants, 2325 Ogeechee Rd. on Jan. 2 at 4 p.m. For more information about the events, contact Alderwoman Gibson-Carter at 912.346.4230.