Sense in a senseless world: 10 years of celebrating Manchester

I participated in the 10 gathering of people of African descent and other residents of Manchester on August 7th. It has been a long road and hasn't really gotten any easier and in some ways present administrative challenges that become more ingrained each year. But it is a community treasure and personal delight to see people dancing, talking, smiling and hanging out in the park moving to the soundtrack flowing from the stage.

When I moved to Manchester in 1992 after living in Chicago for over 30 years my friends and associates would often ask me how I managed to remain in Manchester. I told them then what I would tell you now if you asked, "we create community wherever we go." It is much like the title of my friend Roy Morrison's book, "we build the road as we travel." In many ways the annual African/Caribbean Celebration is a wide path on the my journey to community in Manchester, NH.

From my earliest days in New Hampshire I recognized that a major challenge then, and continuing even till today, for people of African descent was/is social isolation and cultural alienation. In 1992 there were limited to opportunities to gather in public places for anyone in Manchester and those few that did exist (Christmas parade, St. Patrick's Day parade, etc.) were usually not welcoming for people of African descent. Shortly after arriving, at the behest and in agreement and collaboration with my wife, we began to host activities like the annual Kwanzaa event, annual Black History Month film series, and other activities that served as platforms for community members to meet and share their experiences. The activities began to put little nicks in the armor of social isolation. Part of the significance of the experiences that we hosted was the cultural content. It served to address the cultural alienation experienced when you live in a world where the rituals, ceremonies, images and practices are all foreign to you. This feeling of invisibility was countered through programs that provided cultural affirmation by reflecting cultures from across the African continent.

This year was one of the biggest and best events so far. Of course, each year for the last ten years we have felt or been told the same. Well, we celebrate the fellowship and look forward to the next time in Manchester, NH.