LAURINBURG —The African American culture committee has been celebrating creativity for more than 30 years with the annual Kuumba Festival. The festival returns from 11 a.m.
to 6 p.m. Saturday on the grounds of the I.
E. Johnson Community Center, formerly known as the I.E.
Johnson Elementary School. The center is located at 815 McGirts Bridge Road in Laurinburg. Kuumba is the sixth principal of Kwanzaa, which is a celebration of African-American culture, typically held Dec.
26-Jan. 1. “It is an opportunity for us to celebrate and embrace the creativity that the African culture, the African community contributes to Scotland County .
.. We recognize that we have a very diverse county and this is an opportunity not for just African Americans to come together and celebrate but for our whole community to come and celebrate the great contributions of the great African culture,” Darrell Gibson Jr.
once said. Leading up to the festival will be a Long March for Unity and Justice beginning at 9:30 a.m.
on Main Street. An opening ceremony heads the day’s events that will include storytelling, a musical performance by Freddie Rattcliff, a fashion show with African attire and recognition of the Divine Nine fraternities and sororities of Historical Black Colleges. Creativity will be on display this year with a talent show that will be held during the festival.
The event will also incorporate several vendors offering food, arts and crafts and jewelry..
