Unity Celebration and Amani Festival

The Unity Celebration

Children participate in Unity Celebration activities

Photo courtesy of A. Pierce Bounds, Dickinson College

When a small splinter group of Ku Klux Klan members received a permit to rally on the Cumberland County Courthouse steps in Carlisle, PA, community members decided to take a stand against this racial and ethnic intolerance. Members of the Carlisle community formed a group called the Unity Celebration Steering Committee in an effort to create an event that would bring the community together to rally around the principles of equality, justice, and unity. The group's efforts culminated in a community celebration called Unity Day.

On September 23, 2000, the day the KKK rally was scheduled to take place, Carlisle community members and Dickinson College students, professors, and administrators came together to take part in the Unity Day festivities. Unity Day, also called Unity Celebration, effectively celebrated diversity and exhibited the community's zero tolerance policy for hate groups and hate crimes.

Held at Biddle Field from noon until 3:00 p.m., the Unity Celebration included a variety of speakers and activities for people of all ages.

Stores in downtown Carlisle demonstrated their support by giving out purple ribbons to customers, donating goods and services, and closing early on the day of the event to show solidarity.

(Unity Day)

The Amani Festival

People explore the various booths at Carlisle's Amani Festival

Photo courtesy of Nina Scupp

History of Amani

In the summer of 1994, a group of Carlisle area community members joined together to form a nonprofit organization, choosing to call it 'Amani' after the Swahili word for peace. These founders of Amani took the initiative to create an organization that would be proactive in battling racial and ethnic discrimination, as well as in encouraging an environment of acceptance and appreciation of all cultures, races, and ethnicities. This iniative is reflected in the Amani's Mission Statement.

Amani Today

Since 1994, Amani has gained a number of members, sponsors, and volunteers, all of which have helped transform it into a highly successful organization. Members participate in an array of local rallies and events that champion anti-racism, as well as the acceptance of other cultures.

Amani's biggest and most renowned event is the street festival the Amani Festival Committee puts together each year in the spring. Held in downtown Carlisle, PA, the festival hosts a variety of speakers, performers, vendors, and events all geared towards the themes of unity, acceptance, and tolerance.

This year’s Amani Festival will be held on Saturday, May 6 from 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. and will include events for adults, as well as many activities for children. Vendors will be selling crafts, food, books, and clothing and street performers will be dancing and singing throughout the day. A multitude of cultures will be represented including Thai, German, Chinese, Native American, Greek, Carribbean, and African-American. The Schedule of Events provides a detailed account of the vast scope of cultures to be represented in this year's festival.