How This Africa Day Summit Cultivated A Positive Pan Narrative
Coming to the U.S. from another country and trying to not only survive, but thrive can prove to be a difficult journey. Finding community is imperative in the success of navigating the ups and downs of being in a new environment. For the founders of the “Africa Day Summit”, which took place May 27th-28th, the goal was to cultivate new meaningful relationships within the African diaspora in St. Louis, reconcile differences, and continue to take strides forward and unified. We recently had the opportunity to speak with one of the organizers, Brian Barlay about the goals for Africa Day, the inspiration and what “Cultivating a Positive Pan African Narrative” means to them.
Check out the full interview below:
What is Africa Day?
Africa Day is celebrated in Africa and across the globe. St. Louis is one of the few Midwest cities that celebrate Africa Day. Africa day was founded by The Organization of African Unity on May 25th, 1963. It symbolizes the freedom of African people from domination and exploitation. Freedom from the control of our resources and even our psyche. During this time, African nations began gaining independence from colonial settlers.
What was the inspiration behind the creation of the event?
We started celebrating Africa Day in 2021 to showcase the vibrant African community here in St. Louis. There are many leaders, change-makers, and people of political power in the African community. This year we wanted to focus on the notion of bridging the Pan-African gap at the micro and macro scale and exploring whose responsibility it is to do so.
The theme this year is “Cultivating a Positive Pan African Narrative”. What does that phrase mean to you?
Understanding the power behind a story of this year's theme focuses on developing a positive Pan African narrative that will transform and empower our community to take action and unify efforts. To spark a movement and shift the narrative.
The event hosts a wide range of panels dealing with everything from political liberation to intercultural dating. How did you come up with the event topics and why is it important to you to have a wide range of topics?
When it comes to cultivating community you have to think about a wide range of ways these aspects of interweave into everyday life. The world is becoming more diverse and intercultural dating has become more common. Knowing how to leverage our political power and civic engagement affects our lives every day. Maximizing our why helps us to explore deeper how we can find our calling in life and how we can become better versions of ourselves. These topics all touch on various levels we need to consider in order to share our story and own our narrative of ourselves.
What is something that you hope attendees took away from Africa Day?
We hope attendees walk away with a deeper understanding and appreciation for various cultures represented. As well as a wealth of tools and knowledge that can be used in their daily lives and during Cross cultural encounters which will lay the foundation for understanding and unity.
Be sure to follow the organization @AfricaDaySTL for future events.