Kwanzaa celebration canceled at Malcolm X College due to surging COVID cases
CHICAGO - A Kwanzaa celebration at Malcolm X College scheduled for Wednesday has been canceled because of the rising number of COVID-19 cases, a spokeswoman for the City Colleges of Chicago said.
"Due to the new COVID variant and out of an abundance of caution, we are cancelling our Kwanzaa event that was to take place at Malcolm X College," Veronica Resa said in a statement Monday morning.
Cases of coronavirus in the city are up 129% over the previous week according to the most recent data available from the Chicago Department of Public Health. That’s over 2,500 new cases daily on average with a positivity rate of 9.2%.
The celebration of Kwanzaa that had been set to kick off Wednesday would’ve featured a procession and drum call, live performances and shopping. The free event would have included performances by Najwa Dance Corps, Dee Alexander and the A Team, Armen Rah, Ugochi and the Muntu Dance Theatre.
Kwanzaa is held annually from Dec. 26 to Jan. 1 ,celebrating African American culture. The holiday was created in 1966 and is rooted in the African harvest festival held across the world. Each of the seven days of Kwanzaa is dedicated to a separate principle: unity, self-determination, collective work and responsibility, cooperative economics, purpose, creativity and faith.
Kwanzaa will carry on virtually for the DuSable Museum of African American History as it will host "Seven days of the Seven Principles." The event started Sunday and will be streamed each day from 5 p.m. to 6 p.m. on the museum’s Facebook page.
The cancellation of the Malcolm X event comes as the Omicron variant of the coronavirus has rapidly spread throughout the country. Omicron is more contagious than the previously dominant Delta variant, and the arrival of Omicron has forced the hand of other officials to act, imposing new restrictions and regulations in an attempt to mitigate the spread of COVID-19.
This includes the city and Cook County requiring patrons of gyms, bars and restaurants to show proof of vaccination with a valid ID.
Also citing the surge in COVID-19 cases in the state, Rush University Medical Center and NorthShore University HealthSystem have temporarily barred visitors in most inpatient and outpatient areas.