Students as well as Bowling Green residents gathered in the Union ballroom last night for free food and to enjoy a myriad of dancers, singers and drummers in celebration of Kwanzaa.

This year was the 12th year the Center for Multicultural and Academic Initiatives hosted the celebration.

Kwanzaa was created in 1966 by Maulana Karenga, a professor at California State University. It’s a religion-free holiday in celebration of family and culture in the black community – but the audience last night represented a cross section of the United States.

“I did not expect this level of diversity,” said Angelo Brown, associate director of Academic Investment in Math and Science. “This is beautiful.”

After Brown performed the libation, a portion of the celebration in which wine is poured, members of Black Lifestyles and Cultural Knowledge, a student organization from Bowling Green High School, lit the ceremonial candles. There were seven candles, representing both the seven days and seven principles of Kwanzaa. The principles are unity, self-determination, collective work and responsibility, cooperative economics, purpose, creativity and faith.

The principles define how people should live in their day-to-day lives.

“That is what Kwanzaa is really all about,” said freshman Tonye Van Dunk, who hosted the event.

Shortly after the libation, the music and dancing began.

Shelia Brown, Kwanzaa program coordinator, sang an original song with the Harmony and Soul Singers. There were interpretive dances to “Amazing Grace,” and African dances to the sound of drums performed by the Africana Dance Troupe.

The dances were sophomore Megan Pucci’s favorite part.

Pucci had to come to the celebration for class credit, but she had a good time and would go again next year.

“I thought it was really entertaining,” Pucci said. “My personal favorite was the dancing.”

The last act and feature performer was Habib Iddrisu, a Ghana native, master drummer, choreographer and BGSU alumnus.

“Tonight, I’m going to be sharing a lot with you,” Iddrisu said.

He came from a family of drummers and shared how music, dance and art is woven into everyone’s lives in West Africa. As a sign of respect for his elders, he played the flute first.

The first song he played on the drums was one his mother used to sing to him. He called it the “Stupid Song.”

He told a story about how people, when praised for doing well, tend to stop working hard. That song was a warning from his mother to never stop working hard.

“So she sang the ‘Stupid Song,'” he said. “I just want to say thank you, Mom, for teaching me that.”

He sang, he drummed, he danced solo and then he invited the audience to the stage to learn a dance. He drummed, they danced and the event was over.

But Kwanzaa is not.

It’s celebrated officially every year by millions from Dec. 26 to New Year’s Day.