African Leadership Group and Arvada Center Partner on Day of African Culture

The African Leadership Group and the Arvada Center for the Arts and Humanities are hosting a community celebration and concert on the Arvada Center campus on Saturday, August 5, in honor of African Immigrant Month. The occasion is part of the 2023 Afrik Impact celebration by the African Leadership Group.

"Our organization has been around for almost twenty years, and this is our eighth year hosting an Afrik Impact event," says Papa M. Dia, ALG founder and executive director. "We wanted to celebrate proudly and loudly the contributions of African immigrants in the state of Colorado. This initially started with just a couple of hours, but as time went on, the event grew to last the entire month of August. We celebrate with programming that honors the community's social, economic and educational impacts. As part of the social impact, we are hosting the Day of African Culture as a way to recognize the variety of languages and cultures from all 54 countries in Africa."

To highlight African art and culture in Colorado, the nonprofit is collaborating with the Arvada Center to present the fashion of world-renowned Senegalese fashion designer Oumou Sy, as well as a concert from Baaba Maal — one of the country's most celebrated musicians, who contributed to the Wakanda Forever soundtrack — following opener Fata El Presidente.
"We connected with the Arvada Center last year and worked together to bring Carlou D to perform here, and we now have a long-lasting relationship," Dia says. "Early this year, I took [representatives from the Arvada Center] to Senegal as part of a cultural exchange program between Senegal and the Center. We had the chance to meet with the minister of culture, speak with artists and see so much Senegalese art. After traveling to Senegal, we are now bringing Senegalese music, fashion and art to celebrate with the entire Colorado community."

The cultural-exchange trip to Senegal included Arvada Center President and CEO Philip Sneed; his wife, costume designer Clare Henkel; three Denver Botanic Gardens employees; and Dia and his wife, Astu. According to Sneed, the journey was the culmination of a longstanding partnership with the African Leadership Group.

"Before the pandemic, the Arvada Center hosted some of the group's board meetings and leadership trainings," Sneed says. "And they asked a couple of years ago if we could have a singer from Senegal, and I said yes. We tried that in 2021, but couldn’t get a work visa in time, so we had to cancel. In 2022, we did a smaller version of what we’re doing this year with Carlou D. That was successful in bringing the immigrant community to the event, but we didn’t get our normal audience, which we would really like to do, because we want to expose our patrons to Senegal's wonderful music and culture.

"I had been saying to Papa Dia that I would like to go to Senegal and meet some people to talk about cultural exchange in a larger way," he continues. "Because it seemed to me that we should look at the entire Black diaspora, not just the African-American community. There are an estimated 200,000 African immigrants in Colorado, so by focusing on both the African American community and the immigrant community, we could have a bigger impact. This led to a trip to Senegal, where we had a wonderful time with colleagues from other cultural organizations. In our meeting with the minister of culture, he suggested Baaba Maal. We already had him on our radar but didn't get to meet with him then, but the minister offered to help us make that happen. That led to the government of Senegal, through the ministry of culture, paying the airfare for Baaba Maal, his eight musicians, plus his manager."

The African Day of Culture kicks off at 3 p.m. in the Amphitheatre Plaza, with music, games, a live DJ and African food vendors. No ticket is needed to attend the event, and Dia says this part of the day will be a chance for attendees to mingle with patrons from around the world.

"Make sure you show up at 3 p.m. for the kickoff of the cultural day," Dia says. "Our theme this year is 'Breaking Barriers and Building Bridges,' and we really mean that among all people. If you are somebody who is dying to have the opportunity to connect and network with people from different backgrounds and cultures, this is the time. We have seven different communities attending the event: the Latino, Jewish, Caucasian, Black, African immigrant, Asian and Native American communities. So people from all these communities will show up in their traditional attire to enjoy music and food from around Africa."

At 5:30 p.m., a free fashion show of Sy's work will be held in the Arvada Center's Main Stage Theatre. "Her work takes you back to the tradition of African culture, and we are going back to the royalty with kings and queens," Dia says. "It’s not just fashion; there’s a history that comes with the fashion. We’re going to have forty different models dressed up in clothes showcasing seven different kingdoms."

While the event is free, the Arvada Center requests that visitors reserve a ticket in advance to ensure a seat. Following the fashion showcase, the concert portion of the evening will begin in the outdoor amphitheater at 7:30 p.m. Tickets must be purchased for Maal's concert.

"Baaba Maal is not doing an American tour at this time," Sneed notes. "So if you are interested in hearing him perform live in this country, you have to come see him at the Arvada Center. The Day of African Culture is everything I love about Papa's vision for the world. Papa takes a very positive, optimistic approach, which I think goes a long way. He’s brought people together from all these communities who really want to break barriers and build bridges. We hope this is a model for how we can celebrate other communities as well. Not that we don’t intend to offer programming and do the work the rest of the year, but having a big celebration is nice, too."

In addition to the Day of African Culture on August 5, the eighth annual Afrik Impact celebration included a youth empowerment event on July 28 and will host a number of other activities at the Denver Botanic Gardens, including an Education Forum on Mental Health and Gun Violence on Thursday, August 10; a Business Summit on Thursday, August 17; and the African Leadership Group's 8th Annual Afrik Impact Gala on Saturday, August 26.

"Our wish and dream is to replicate the same partnership with as many institutions as possible," Dia says. "We would like to collaborate with other arts, culture and education organizations to continue building this type of action. Working together is the only way we can all contribute to making the world a better place for our children and, hopefully, leaving it a better place than we found it. The more we can work together and collaborate, the more successful we will all be. There is no one organization that can do it alone, so I am simply calling out and opening our hearts and arms to anyone who is willing to partner with the African Leadership Group to make our community a better place."

Day of African Culture, Saturday, August 5, Arvada Center for the Arts and Humanities, 6901 Wadsworth Boulevard, Arvada. Find more information at usalg.org.