The sixtieth anniversaries of the Nguzo Saba / Seven Principles this year (2025) and Kwanzaa next year (2026), are milestone occasions that inspire us to look back on what this communal value system and cultural holiday have provided for us. It also provides an opportunity to consider how these still emerging traditions can be further developed and applied for our benefit – and who should do that work.

Kawaida Philosophy and the Cultural Crisis

The Seven Principles and Kwanzaa both extend from a Pan African social philosophy called "Kawaida" that was conceived in the early 1960s by activist scholar Dr. Maulana Karenga when he was a graduate student. He now defines Kawaida to be – "an ongoing synthesis of the best African thought and practice in constant exchange with the world." The Nguzo Saba / Seven Principles were introduced through his organization, Us, in 1965 and Kwanzaa followed the next year in 1966. As a social philosophy, Kawaida is more commonly discussed in academic circles, with these two cultural traditions being the primary way it relates to the public.

Back then, Kawaida asserted that "the central crisis in Black life [was] the cultural crisis" of the 1960s that imposed oppression and limited possibilities upon Black people and communities. In response, Dr. Karenga and Us created the Nguzo Saba and Kwanzaa to reconnect Black people with African culture to provide "identity, purpose, and direction" for increased cultural pride and principled practice in our families and communities. During the six decades since, these two cultural institutions have met the original Kawaida objective with many Black people and they are poised for continued growth and positive impact.

As we face increasing oppression and decreasing opportunities in this country, yet again, in 2025 – with a different, but familiar "cultural crisis" raging all around us – we realize this moment calls on us to look deeper into our culture, history, and traditions like Kwanzaa and the Nguzo Saba for answers and resources to inform the way we move and to help prepare us for what comes next.

The Seven-Step Roadmap

New solutions to old and new problems can be found in the lessons we have not yet learned from our best teachings. For example, the Seven Principles are literally a seven-step roadmap for improved outcomes and social transformation. Positive outcomes are guaranteed if we follow their teachings consistently. Yet, that full potential has not been realized, in part, because that requires applying the Seven Principles beyond Kwanzaa.

But who agrees with and should contribute to this expanded understanding and application of these teachings? Many people agree, and with the communal nature of the holiday and the principles, we believe everybody who can contribute, should contribute to the Seven Principles being applied as far and wide as possible. Umoja (Unity), Ujima (Collective Work and Responsibility), Imani (Faith) – and all the other principles – require exactly that.

The Afrikan Restoration Project's Work

So, for this years' milestone celebration, our work at The Afrikan Restoration Project recognizes and builds upon the work done during the first sixty years of the Nguzo Saba and Kwanzaa to promote greater understanding, broader reach and application of these exceptional and practical teachings for improved outcomes in every way for the next sixty years and beyond.

Our work began with an assessment of the Black community's understanding and embrace of Kwanzaa and how well we apply each one of the Seven Principles, and we quickly determined the need to improve in every way. That analysis led to different strategies for how we can help increase understanding and embrace of Kwanzaa and engagement with the Seven Principles.

The following information outlines our work, our plans for this Kwanzaa season, and our ongoing effort to promote the Seven Principles as a "Black job" for all of us to fulfill – everyday.

Kwanzaa FOR KIDS Program

With our shared focus on the Seven Principles and S.T.E.M. (science, technology, engineering, and manufacturing) we use available technology to present more details about the story of Kwanzaa's origin. That means we are using modern technology in a variety of ways to create content for our "Kwanzaa FOR KIDS" program this year looking at the founding of the holiday through the lens of the children involved in the very first Kwanzaa.

Our goal is to increase understanding and engagement among people who already celebrate Kwanzaa while reaching a new generation of children and adults by sharing a new, true story about the original inspiration of the holiday as a fun occasion for children. That story is based on the perspective of Kinamo Damu (Terri Bandele) and Karama Damu (Sam Carr, Jr.) who were two of the children involved in the first occasion (or the "Zep-Tepi") of Kwanzaa. In fact, Kinamo inspired the holiday's creation in 1965 as a ten-year-old girl by asking questions about how Africans celebrate the holidays. We are excited to have them as active participants in our work.

The story about their involvement in the first Kwanzaa is referenced throughout our "STEM 'n 'Nem" series and is shared in limited detail in the "Kwanzaa, STEM, and the Seven Principles" story. A more complete account of the year leading up to the first Kwanzaa is shared from their perspective in our "Kwanzaa FOR KIDS" story. Both books will be available before Kwanzaa.

Online Presentations and Articles

The balance of our work this year will be shared in a series of online presentations and articles / blog posts published on our https://nguzosaba365.org and https://kwanzaa.org websites, and in all appropriate online and print publications we can access. That includes this article, one that addresses the "Zep-Tepi" / "First Occasion" of Kwanzaa, and one that addresses the Black community's status related to each one of the principles. All three articles are available on the referenced blogs.

In summary, we believe the "courageous questioning" written about in Kawaida philosophy is necessary at this moment along with the sober reflection of the seventh day of Kwanzaa – the Day of Meditation. We further believe this type of critical self-examination will lead us to find the additional answers we need within our culture at this critical moment.

We thank Dr. Karenga for his vision, leadership, contribution, and consistent work during the past six decades to create, maintain and promote Kwanzaa and the Seven Principles as cultural institutions, and for leaving space for this generation to make our own contribution to their growth and expansion. We also thank the people in the Us Organization who assisted and contributed in their own way to this communal holiday's creation and expansion.

We look forward to completing our work for this Kwanzaa season and participating in what will surely be a meaningful season celebrating this milestone occasion. We ask that you visit our https://kwanzaa.org and https://nguzosaba365.org websites to stay informed about our activities this year, and that you plan to join us on Sunday, December 28, 2025 at 5pm PST for our annual Kwanzaa Celebration.

Please also reach us at contact@kwanzaa.org or contact@nguzosaba365.org for more info.