Kwanzaa

The following is a reply I made to an article regarding the perceived decline of the solely African-American holiday known as Kwanzaa. My reply addresses the racial aspect of this article. It also goes along the lines of an earlier post I wrote on this very subject entitled "We're All Just Americans."

I'm going to make an inflammatory statement here, but please, let me explain.

I am NOT of African descent. I personally feel that Kwanzaa, while admirable in what it exemplifies, is an attempt to further drive a racial wedge between those Americans of European descent and those of African descent.

The line between races and cultures is getting blurry with every passing year. But there will always be people yelling about the inequality of the black man; how the whities just keep oppressing. Tell me I'm wrong.

Now, if Americans of European descent decided to have a holiday to celebrate their culture, to show pride in their heritage, elements of the black community would be screaming racism. Yet, the leaders of the Kwanzaa movement (from what I've read) seek to isolate the black community by setting this holiday apart from whites and those of other racial backgrounds. Isn't this called 'reverse discrimination?' Or maybe a better word--Hypocritical.

Personally, I don't think there should be ANY division amongst races in the United States of America. Yes, we are all (aside from Native Americans) immigrants to this country. America is a melting pot of cultures. We should all learn about our ancestral heritage, and be proud of where we came from.

But, we are ALL just Americans. Regardless of race, heritage, ancient social orders etc, we are ALL Americans. No African-American; no Japanese-American; no Hispanic-American, etc. How about just saying, I am an American!

I say, take pride in being American. Celebrate THAT!

Everything else is just a reminder that certain people in this country want racism to continue existing so they have a reason to continue with their finger-pointing rhetoric while raising racial self indulgence to an art form.