Kwanzaa Day 2 – Kujichagulia or Self-Determination

On this second day of Kwanzaa, we celebrate the principle of kujichagulia which means “self-determination” in Swahili.

Self-determination means to define ourselves, name ourselves, create for ourselves, and speak for ourselves–not the opposite. By becoming self-determined, we stake our claim to our full humanity. We proclaim that we, too, are made in God’s image.

Since our African ancestors left the shores of Africa against their will during the Middle Passage, our history involved:

*being defined by others: laws were enacted which defined our ancestors as either chattel property or citizens;

*being named by others: when our ancestors came to the West as enslaved people, they lost their African names and unique ethnic identity;

*being created in another person’s imagination through cultural stereotypes, media, and literature, thereby rendering many people voiceless, unable to tell our own stories.

Expressing self-determination in light of our history is liberating. For this, we light the red candle on the kinara.