African American culture celebrated at Kwanzaa gathering in Phoenix

Phoenix’s historic Eastlake Park community was host to a Kwanzaa gathering on Saturday, offering Black Arizonans an alternative to more mainstream winter holidays. The celebration was held outside the Afri-Soul Marketplace at 12th and Washington streets. About 10 Black-owned businesses, including artists, bakeries and food trucks, anchored the event. Patience Titcombe, better known as Chef Patty and proprietor of Nigerian food truck Lasgidi Cafe, was one of the event organizers. “Kwanzaa is rooted in African tradition, and to be able to bring a taste of home through my food … it just makes my heart warm,” said Titcombe, a Nigerian immigrant. Kwanzaa offers Black people in the U.S. the chance to directly celebrate their African heritage, she said. Kwanzaa was created in 1966, a year after the Watts riots in Los Angeles, by Maulana Ron Karenga, a Black Power movement activist, to “reaffirm and restore African heritage and culture,” according to the National Museum of African American History and Culture. “Kwanzaa is the one holiday that really represents our culture,” Titcombe said. “We celebrate Christmas … but there’s really nothing cut out for Black and African American people.” A celebration rooted in the amplification of Black culture Dozens of people...