Groups show principles of Kwanzaa, help others

Members of IU student organizations put the principles of Kwanzaa into action by making a positive difference in the community.

Organization members showcased their programs and events at Wednesday’s Pre-Kwanzaa celebration hosted at the Neal-Marshall Black Culture Center.

The organizations African American Diaspora Studies Graduate Society, Asian American Association, Neal-Marshall Student Group, Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity, Inc. and Voices of Hope all had to plan and develop a program or event that would represent one of the seven principles of Kwanzaa: unity, self-determination, collective work and responsibility – or to help your neighbor, collective economics – to support community businesses, purpose, creativity and faith.

Each group presented their program or event in front of a panel of judges and determined what group fulfilled the mission of “Kwanzaa-in-Action” best.
The winning team, Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity, received $500 from the Neal-Marshall
Center to continue on their good work.

Every fall semester Phi Beta Sigma does Sigma Strolls for AIDS, where members of the fraternity, as well as other greek community members, do a dance technique known as “strolling” for more than a mile around campus. This fall they raised $154 for AIDS research.

Phi Beta Sigma’s program was primarily focused on the principle of creativity. Though Phi Beta Sigma president Walter Ballard was inspired by Dance Marathon, he wanted to do something that was uniquely African-American.

Phi Beta Sigma also hosts the event Sigmas Sleep Out during the fall semester, in which they raise money for the Bloomington homeless community.

The Sigmas got a chance to experience what it was like to be homeless for one night.

“How can we help someone if we do not know what they are going through?” Ballard said.

Second-place winner, the Neal-Marshall Student Group, worked with three young, homeless women from the organization Stepping Stones.

This student organization focused on the principle of building unity. Lynette Anigbo, president of the Neal-Marshall Student Group, said they chose unity because it is at the center of all endeavors.

Members of the Neal-Marshall Student Group wanted to have a personal conversation with these 18- and 19-year-old girls who were complete strangers to them. The group’s hope was to build a community, break down any walls and have an open dialogue about their struggles, Anigbo said.

Other activities included baking and eating cookies, making shirts and creating a mission statement of what they hope to achieve in their lives.

The mission statements were written on a poster and were personal.

One of the women from Stepping Stones, Deshona, shared this in her mission statement: “I commit to myself that I will never give up and only succeed to the best of my ability. That others opinions, good or bad, will not determine how I see myself.
That my childhood does not put a limit of how inspiring, loving, fun and happy I can be.”

Fourth-place winners, Voices of Hope, worked with the organization Circles Initiative and delivered 15 food baskets to 15 needy families in Bloomington. The main principle of their event was collective work and responsibility.

In the Neal-Marshall Black Culture Center’s Grand-Hall, members of Voices of Hope and the families they helped broke bread together.

The families they helped thanked them for the meal and food baskets.

“Being here with you guys made me feel at home like I was with my own family,” a person who attended the dinner told senior Ramone Singfield, contact person for Voice of Hope.

The experience was also fulfilling for those who gave.

“To be a part of giving to someone was more of a delight,” Singfield said