SPRINGFIELD – City residents and elected officials gathered at the UMass Center at Tower Square on Dec. 30 to celebrate Kwanzaa and the African American community.

Kwanzaa is celebrated from Dec. 26 to Jan. 1 and includes seven principles, which include unity, self-determination, collective word and responsibility, cooperative economics, purpose, creativity, and faith.

State Rep. Elect Bud Williams argued that African American history doesn’t begin with slavery.

“We go back to building the pyramids and the first language and the Nile River,” he added.  

He said he’s been a proponent of the establishment of a museum to promote the history of African Americans.  

“We are missing out on history,” he explained. “Every other ethnic group celebrates their history and they know their history. You talk to the Jewish community and they know their history. They know where they come from … If you don’t know where you’ve been, there’s no way in the world you’re going to know where you are going.”

Williams said he also believes African American communities need to get “real serious about our business,” noting that unity among community members should be a critical component.

State Rep. Benjamin Swan Sr., who was a member of the Civil Rights Movement, said his first Kwanzaa was in 1967 in New York City and took place at the Audubon Ballroom, where Malcolm X was assassinated two years prior.

“[The movement] gave you the economic opportunity, financial aid, and so many aspects that you take for granted and don’t even think about,” he added.

Mayor Domenic Sarno presented a proclamation during the event, noting that Dec. 26 through Jan. 1 is Kwanzaa week in the city of Springfield and urged citizens to celebrate the ideals of the holiday.

“When you look at the ideals of Kwanzaa they can really go across the board no matter what creed, color, or background,” he added. “Springfield is very very lucky to have such a strong African American community … that dates back to the 1850s.”

He emphasized Kwanzaa’s role in celebrating empowerment, especially in regards to youth being empowered through education.

Former state Sen. Dianne Wilkerson, who was the keynote speaker of the event, said she helped with the establishment of Boston’s first black owned snow removal service in Boston.

She added she believes as a people “there is no one better on this Earth” than African Americans to deal with policies and decisions made by a Trump presidency during the next four years.

“We will continue to have all the challenges that we’ve always had – just like yesterday,” she noted. “We have to continue to focus in addressing our urban schools. I think about the fact that America is paying, it will continue to pay, for the lies we teach and the history that we deny.” 

She continued, “We have to address black and Latino male unemployment … Dealing with strained community police relationships, I think you all know a little bit about that, as we all do. The whole criminal justice system – mass incarceration. The same things we hear every day, which are a problem today are going to be a problem after Jan. 20.”

Wilkerson said she believes there is a direct connection between poverty and urban blight and she noted the best way to address poverty is to “give some money into the hands of people who don’t have it.”