She said Karenga fashioned Kwanzaa in the wake of the Watts riots in 1966, proclaiming that African Americans needed to be unified and serious to achieve their goals of freedom and prosperity. This is not a religious holiday like Christmas, where it comes and goes. For example, Jefferson gave her niece in South Carolina a calendar earlier this week. She told her niece to mark important dates such as family members' birthdays or anniversaries. A typical Kwanzaa celebration uses a kinara, which is a candlestick holder that contains seven candles.
Celebrants also join in a potluck, featuring some traditional African dishes.
It's a way to live. Robbers attack brother of dead Fairfield grocer A Vallejo grocer was robbed Wednesday. His brother was killed in a June robbery. Both brothers withdrew money from banks to cash checks for their store customers. Both carried 9mm handguns for protection.