Seven Principles of Kwanzaa: African American Family Values
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The Seven Principles of Kwanzaa represents the core family values system for African Americans. These 7 guiding principles are the building blocks for creating the nurturing environment needed to cultivate, reinforce and sustain healthy families and neighborhoods. And, just as important, these principles are crucial for producing youth and adults equal to the task of meeting the demands of the modern day knowledge society/economy. These are the values we will celebrate nationally in 60 days.
Principle One: Seeking Harmony and Togetherness
Unity/Umoja Building and fostering harmonious, positive, and warm, relationships and attachments in the family, school, neighborhood, and large national community
Principle Two: Directing Our Own Lives and Course of Action
Self-Determination/Kujichagulia Defining and shaping our own interests, priorities, and image, and grounding our thoughts, practices, rituals, and celebrations in our own history and culture
Principle Three: Caring For Each Other’s Well-Being
Collective Work and Responsibility/Ujima Investing collectively in our family’s and community’s well-being, and working in mutual beneficial way to create the best conditions and possibilities of life for everyone
Principle Four: Sharing Wealth and Resources
Cooperative Economic/Ujamaa Sharing and pooling our financial resources and goods and services for the common benefit of family and community participants with the goal of building and sustaining cooperative economic enterprises
Principle Five: Nation Building
Purpose/Nia Fulfilling our duty and obligation to contribute to the high and morally serious purpose of nation-building, i.e. , the quest to recover and restore our people to their traditional greatness
Principle Six: Continuous Improvement and Perfection
Creativity/Kuumba Working diligently to continuously enhance our families, neighborhoods and people
Principle Seven: Belief in Ourselves and the Promise of Tomorrow
Faith/Imani Trusting and believing with our heart and mind in ourselves, our parents, our teachers, and our leaders and our capacity as a people to make a better world
