2025
Recent News
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March
Arab Ame
The month of April has been designated National Arab American Heritage Month. This year’s theme is “Honoring the past, Inspiring the Future”. Arab Americans have brought and continue to bring important traditions, cultures and history that are woven into the tapestry of the United States. Arab Americans are not a monolith, but rather they represent a very diverse group of people whose roots stretch from northern Africa to Southwest Asia (a.k.a. the Middle East), including but not limited to Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Djibouti, Sudan, Somalia, Egypt, Palestine, Bahrain, Oman, Syria, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, the U.A.E., Jordan, Lebanon, and Qatar.Read More -
Nowruz
Read MoreThursday March 20th will be Nowruz, the Persian New Year which lasts 13 days. Literally translated, Nowruz means New Day. Falling on the first day of the month of Farvardin, it dates back over 3000 years! Its roots lie in the Zoroastrian faith; however it is also celebrated by the Baha’i as well as by some Muslim communities. In 2010, Nowruz was added to the UNESCO List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. -
Women's History Month
Read More“Women understand that, for a positive future, we need to eliminate bias and discrimination entirely from our lives and institutions. Women from every background have long realized that an uneven playing field will never bring equality or justice - we recognize the example of women who are committed to embracing everyone and excluding no one in our common quest for freedom and opportunity.” From National Women’s History Alliance -
February
Ramadan
Read MoreToday, Friday, February 28th, marks the beginning of the most sacred month of Ramadan which will last until March 30th. It commemorates the apparition of the angel Gabriel to the Prophet Mohammed to reveal the Qur’an, Islam’s Holy Book. It is a faith of peace and submission to God. Islam from comes from the word salama or peace. One of the three Abrahamic religions (its followers are called Muslims), Islam believes that several Holy Books were handed down at various points in time over the course of 24 years during the month of Ramadan: the Gospels, the Qur’an and the Torah. Celebrated by Muslims around the world, it is one of the 5 pillars of Islam and is the month of peace, tranquility, goodness, forgiveness, mercy, revelation, and practicing self-restraint. The faithful are invited to self-reflect and renew their spiritual relationship with God. Families spend time together and with their community as they gather at the mosque to devote time to prayer and give to charity (zakat or donations to those less fortunate). -
January
Black History Month
Read More“Despite the profound change in race relations that has occurred in our lives, Carter G. Woodson’s vision for black history as a means of transformation and change is still quite relevant and quite useful. One thing has not changed. That is the need to draw inspiration and guidance from the past. And through that inspiration, people will find tools and paths that will help them live their lives. Black Resistance is the Journey towards Equality.” National Museum of African American History & Culture -
Lunar New Year
Read MoreChinese New Year or the Lunar New Year will be celebrated on Wednesday, January 29th. Also known as the Spring Festival, it is one of the most important holidays in China going back hundreds of years to the Han dynasty. It is the beginning of spring where new beginnings are celebrated, and ancestors and deities are honored. This culminates 15 days later in the Festival of the Lantern. This year, 2025, is designated as the year of the Wood Snake in the Chinese zodiac. “The Snake represents wisdom, knowledge, intelligence, intuition and creativity. Snakes are also associated with good luck, prosperity, fertility and longevity. In some legends, snakes are considered divine messengers and guardians of sacred places. Snakes are also revered for their ability to shed their skin and renew themselves, symbolizing transformation and rebirth.” – The South China Morning PostOne legend holds that the monster Nian (which rhymes with year in Chinese), would eat crops, livestock, and people. To keep him away, families would place food on their doorsteps. When they heard he feared loud noises and the color red, people began decorating their doors and windows with red lanterns and scrolls, as well as dressing in red. They would set off loud firecrackers and fireworks to scare Nian away. For good fortune, they gave children gifts of coins in red envelopes and ate dumplings.Homes are cleaned and new clothes are bought. Friends wish each other happiness, wealth, and longevity. Home decorations include paper-cut outs and lanterns. Families share meals at home. “The New Year’s Eve dinner is the most important meal for Chinese families. It is customary for fish and dumplings to be served. These two dishes mean “prosperous.” New Year Cake made with glutinous rice flour mixed together with some sugar is popular in Eastern China. Tang Yuan, made from glutinous rice flour mixed with a small amount of water to form small balls (filled or unfilled), is cooked and served in boiling water. It is traditionally eaten on the last day of Chinese New Year’s festival.” Timothy S.Y. Lam Museum of AnthropologyRed scrolls with gold or black writing of spring couplets (short poems called chunlian) with themes such as nature, history, and culture, as well as gratitude, happiness, and prosperity are hung as decorations on the walls, doors, and windows.Here are a couple of examples of chunlian from InstantMandarin.com:Chūn xiǎo (春晓) Spring Morning by Meng Haoran (689-740) of Tang DynastyChūn mián bù jué xiǎo, 春 眠 不 觉 晓,This spring morning in bed I'm still lying,chù chù wén tí niǎo, 处 处 闻 啼 鸟。not to awake till the birds are crying.Yè lái fēng yǔ sheng, 夜 来 风 雨 声,After one night of wind and showers,huā luò zhī duō shǎo, 花 落 知 多 少。
how many are the fallen flowers?Yì jiāng nán (忆江南) Dreaming of the Southern Shore by Bai Juyi (772-846) of Tang DynastyJiāngnán hǎo, 江南好Fair Southern shore,Fēngjǐng jiù céng ān. 风景旧曾谙。With scenes I adore.Rì chū jiāng huāhóng shèng huǒ, 日出江花红胜火,At sunrise riverside flowers redder than fire,chūnlái jiāngshuǐ lǜ rú lán. 春来江水绿如蓝。in spring green waves grow as blue as sapphire,Néng bù yì jiāngnán? 能不忆江南?Which I can’t but admire.“How do you say Happy New Year in Chinese? The most common way in Cantonese is to say san nin faai lok, and in Mandarin, Xīn nián kuài lè.” From the South China Morning PostHere are some links to learn more about Chinese New Year.Here is a list of delightful children's books that capture a rich sense of tradition and the renewal that arrives with the new year and the spring celebrations.Chinese New Year Colors (Board Book) by Richard Lo, ages 0-3: Celebrate Lunar New Year with a rainbow of traditions in this bilingual board book! Welcome to the festivities of the Chinese New Year, where symbolic gifts, foods, and objects come together in a celebration of beautiful colors.Bringing in the New Year by Grace Lin, ages 3-6: Grace Lin brings the Chinese New Year traditions to life through the eyes of a young girl and her family as they prepare for their family New Year celebrationAmy Wu and the Patchwork Dragon by Kat Zhang and Charlene Chua, ages 3-6: Amy loves craft time at school. But when her teacher asks everyone to make their own dragon, Amy feels stuck. After school, a story from Grandma sparks new inspiration, and Amy rounds up her family to help her.Bringing in the New Year by Grace Lin ages: 3-6: Grace Lin brings the Chinese New Year traditions to life through the eyes of a young girl and her family as they prepare for their family New Year celebration.My Chinatown by Kam Mak, ages 6-9: It's a New Year in Chinatown, but one little boy from Hong Kong wonders, "How can it ever be a good year thousands of miles from home?" As he moves through the seasons, however, New York finally begins to feel like home. Told in verse, these poems capture the challenges of adapting to a new life from a child's point of view.New Clothes for New Year’s Day by Hyun-Joo Bae, ages 6-9: A little girl gets ready to celebrate the Lunar New Year in this gentle and stunningly illustrated book first published in South Korea. Excitement mounts as she details how she dresses for this engaging celebration with universal appeal.Case of the Goblin Pearls (Chinatown Mystery, No. 1) by Laurence Yep and Nicholas Krenitsky, ages: middle school: When Aunt Tiger Lil comes to Chinatown, she and Lily, her niece and namesake, prepare for the New Year's celebration, solve the mystery of a stolen pearl necklace, and help a sweatshop worker.In the Year of the Boar and Jackie Robinson by Bette Bao Lor and Marc Simont, ages: middle school: Meet Shirley Temple Wong, a delightful heroine who has come from China and arrived in Brooklyn in 1947 — the Year of the Boar and Jackie Robinson. Based on the author's own experiences, the story captures the highs and lows of coming to live in a new country, learning English, and falling in love with the Brooklyn Dodgers during moments that are both heartbreaking and hilarious.To all our families who celebrate the Lunar New Year, may good fortune and well-being come your way in this Year of the Snake! -
MLK Day
This coming Monday, January 20th, we honor Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. – Minister, Nobel Prize Peace Winner, Civil Rights Activist, and Leader. Click to read moreRead More
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