BEHIND TRADITION

Saturday, January 9, 2016

INDEPENDENCE DAY OF THE UNITED STATES

Today I’m going to talk about the Independence Day of the United States. The fourth of July is known worldwide because it is one of the most important celebrations in America. It was a very important day since it was the day that the Declaration of Independence, which separated the thirteen colonies from Britain, was adopted in 1776. Celebrating this day does not come after the death of Thomas Jefferson and John Adams who also died on July, 4th (1826). These events made the date even more important and it became a celebration.

Fireworks, concerts, picnics, barbecues and carnival followed by political speeches and ceremonies are made in this day full of red, blue and white magic. Here I leave you an excerpt from Kennedy’s speech in 1962:

http://www.jfklibrary.org/Asset-Viewer/RrjaDhW5B0OYm2zaJbyPgg.aspx

Families expend their day outdoors making picnics and barbecues as I have already said. In the morning there are made parades. According to the official page of the parades (I’ll leave the link below): it “consists of invited bands, fife and drum corps, floats, military and specialty units, giant balloons, equestrian, drill teams, VIP's, national dignitaries, and celebrity participants.”

In Washington, for example, there are traditional parades of marching bands and floats.

After the parade, visitors have the option to call on the museums located along the National Mall which are free and many of them have prepared a special program for the Independence Day.

Polo Grounds, Green Port

But without a doubt the most magical moment is the fireworks time. It occurs normally in the evening and in places such as parks. The fireworks are accompanied by songs whose lyrics usually talks about the War of 1812.

NYC (2014)

Sources:

https://www.constitutionfacts.com/us-declaration-of-independence/fourth-of-july/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Independence_Day_(United_States)

http://www.jfklibrary.org/Asset-Viewer/RrjaDhW5B0OYm2zaJbyPgg.aspx

http://www.july4thparade.com/

JUNKANOO, THE GREAT FESTIVAL OF THE BAHAMAS

The music of the Bahamas is especially related to Junkanoo, a kind of street carnival that occurs in the early morning hours across many towns of the Bahamas on Boxing Day (December 26) and New Year’s Day (January 1) too. However, it is in downtown Nassau where the largest celebration takes place.

The origin of the name given to this celebration has been disputed, although, the idea of this name has its origin in an African slave called John Canoe or that it comes from the French phrase gens inconnus (unknown or masked people) are the most popular ones. Junkanoo may be the closest link to African heritage since it has not changed over the years. It is believed that this festival started during 16^th and 17^th. Slaves were given a special holiday during Christmas time so they could leave the plantation and celebrate their freedom with their families.

INFLUENTIAL PERSONALITIES OF SOUTH AFRICA

The Republic of South Africa is a country situated in the very south of the African continent. It is formed by a multi-ethnic society with plenty of cultures, religions and a great variety of languages, among which 11 as official (with English ranked as the 4^th most used, especially in public and commercial life). This country is well known for its struggle against racism, mostly during the apartheid system. The apartheid system contained laws of racial segregation that sought the dominance of the white minority over the black majority. This generated a contraposition by the African National Congress and many anti-apartheid activists, among whom we can find:

NELSON MANDELA

One of the most important South African figures, Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela was born on 18 July 1918 in Mvezo. Member of a royal family, but only he received formal education. He attended Fort Hare University, the only black university in South Africa at the time, but he was expelled after a year due to his political activism. He spent some time working as an apprentice and later, in 1952, he started the first black legal firm with his friend Oliver Tambo, called Mandela and Tambo. On August 5^th in 1962, he was arrested, becoming the most famous political prisoner. He got out of prison in 1990, became president of South Africa in 1994 and started creating the non-racial country he'd always dreamed of.

ARCHBISHOP DESMOND TUTU

Emeritus Desmond Tutu was born on 7 October 1931 in Klerksdorp. A humanitarian figure of humble origins, he had to abandon his studies in 1953 because of the Bantu Education Act. He joined the Anglican Church and and helped in the fight against the apartheid system. He made history in 1975 for becoming the first Anglican Dean of Johannesburg and again in 1986 when he was appointed Archbishop of Cape Town. He won a Nobel Peace Prize in 1984, but continued fighting against racism and injustice.

NADINE GORDIMER

Born on 20 November 1923, she was a South African writer and political activist. She came from a white middle-class family of Jewish origins. She witnessed first-hand the oppressive apartheid system, against which she fought vehemently. She used this experiences in her novels, which back then were banned in South Africa, but widely read around the rest of the world. She won many awards such as the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1991, becoming the first South African to win this celebrated award. From 1994 onwards, she also became an activist in the HIV/AIDS movement.

Sources:

MULTICULTURALISM IN CANADA

Canada is a very progressive, diverse and multicultural country. By "multicultural" we mean that there is an equal celebration of different racial, religious and cultural backgrounds. This is possible thanks to the importance of immigration in Canada.

RELIGION IN SINGAPORE

Singapore or Republic of Singapore is a sovereign country and island placed in Southeast Asia. Due to its diversity, many religions are practiced in this country. The five major religions that coexist in Singapore are: Buddhism, Islam, followed by Christianity, Taoism and Hinduism. Although these are the most practiced religions, there are also others but they are practiced by a lower percentage of the population.

Buddhism is practiced by more than three-fifths of Singapore's population in its three main strands: Theravada, Mahayana, and Vajrayana. The teachings practiced by Buddhists are: Morality, Wisdom and Concentration. The art of Fengshui, which consists of evoking positive energy, is a great point of this religion.

Kong Meng San Phor Kar See Monastery
(Chinese Mahayana Buddhist temple in Singapore)

ST. PATRICK'S DAY

Every year on 17 March, St. Patrick’s Day is celebrated in many parts of the world but, especially, by Irish communities. This is a cultural and religious celebration that honors the death date of St. Patrick, the patron saint of Ireland.

At the beginning of the 17^th century, St. Patrick’s Day was made an official Christian feast day. This date commemorates the arrival of Christianity in Ireland introduced by Saint Patrick. However, this is also a celebration of the heritage and culture of the Irish.

KENYA

Hi everyone! It’s time to talk about Kenya. (I hardly recommend you its website about tourism, it’s very nice!). Kenya has two official languages: English and Swahili despite the fact that there are many languages which are talked in Kenya.

Here I leave you some interesting things about Kenya and its society:

v Kenya was known as British East Africa, but it became independent in 1963 and in 1964 it became a Republic.
v On 12 December, it is celebrated “Jamhuri Day” (jamhuri means “republic” in Swahili) which commemorates the day that the country got the independence.
v It was named Kenya, which means “white mountain”, because of the Mount Kenya which is a traditional place of the country and the second-highest mountain of Africa.
v The Kikuyu tribe is the one that has more population (20%) between the 70 tribes which inhabit Kenya.
v Kenyan’s life expectancy is of 52 years but it is thought that people use to die when they get on about 47 because of AIDS.
v Kenya’s athletes are known worldwide because of their good ability in middle-distance running, of which Kevin Rudisha is the current Olympic champion.

Kevin Rudisha

v When a woman has a child, they are called “mum” plus the name of her first child.
v Coffee is an export product, they don’t consume it. They usually drink tea and beer despite coffee is the biggest income generator.

Woman collecting coffee.

v After coffee, as you can see in the web site of Kenya, tourism has a great influence in the economy of the country.
v Kenya has only two seasons. There is one dry and another completely rainy.
v The great majority of the population of Kenya, they are Protestants.
v Althoug the 90% of the population is black, there is also white population and they are Kenyans born there too.

I end with this amazing photograph taken from the official page of tourism in Kenya. Hope you have enjoied it.