Multicultural organizations on campus will come together tonight to celebrate African culture. Planned performances include step shows, dance ensembles and a keynote speaker from Black Entertainment Television.
Harambee is an annual welcoming celebration that highlights University students and African American culture, said Chaunda Allen, director of the Office of Multicultural Affairs, in an e-mail.
The Black Culture Committee, Office of Multicultural Affairs and the African American Cultural Center are hosting the event at the Pete Maravich Assembly Center at 7 p.m.
The host organizations will hold a Community Involvement Fair where students can volunteer with the Red Cross, Battered Women’s Shelter and other organizations helping victims of hurricanes Katrina and Rita at 6:30 p.m., said Jennifer Price, general studies senior and associate chair for membership for the Union Program Council’s Black Cultural Committee.
Harambee will feature the Martin Luther King Dance Ensemble, Ebony Renaissance Choir, a unity step exhibition featuring members from each fraternity and sorority and Jeffrey Johnson, a public speaker, minister and host of Rap City, a show on BET featuring social and political issues that affect black communities.
The celebration for African American students began in the 1970s, hosted by Junior Division, a program that later became University Center for Freshman Year and University College Center for Advising and Counseling, Price said. The celebration became known as Harambee in 1993.
“Harambee is Swahili for ‘coming together,'” Price said. “I expect a great turnout.”
Contact Leslie Ziober at [email protected]