How to celebrate Imani on the last day of Kwanzaa

theGrio breaks down how to celebrate Day 7 of the Kwanzaa holiday

Jan. 1 marks the final day of Kwanzaa, and on this seventh day, we light the third green candle to the right of the black candle. This candle represents the principle of Imani (faith).

Pledge: On this day, we pledge to believe with all our heart in our people, our parents, our teachers, our leaders and the righteousness and victory of our struggle.

Selma To Montgomery March
American civil rights campaigner Martin Luther King (1929 – 1968) and his wife Coretta Scott King lead a black voting rights march from Selma, Alabama, to the state capital in Montgomery in March of 1965. (Photo by William Lovelace/Daily Express/Hulton Archive/Getty Images)

The Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. once said, “Faith is taking the first step when you don’t see the whole staircase.”

None of the other principles are possible without faith. In order to have unity, we must have faith in our community. In order to have cooperative economics, we must have faith in the businesses we support. And in order to have purpose, we must have faith that we are here for a reason.

A person holds a "Happy Kwanzaa" sign
(Adobe stock)

Some ways to practice Imani include connecting with a spiritual or religious practice, applying for a new job or starting a new business and allowing yourself to let go of worry and trust in your Black excellence.

How will you be celebrating Imani today?

Habari gani? Imani!

Happy Kwanzaa!

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