Every year in September, Senegalese retaurant Le Grand Dakar hosts a neighborhood block party on Grand Ave (btw Clifton and Lafayette). Last year there was a kid’s fashion show, outdoor vendors and delicious food at half-price, but for this year’s 5th anniversary with co-sponsor MoCaDa, the event will be taken to a new level.
The festival focuses on the relationship between Africa and Brooklyn, and the continent’s vibrant presence is felt in the borough in many ways. To mark the Golden Jubilee 50th anniversary of independence in 17 different African nations - including Congo, Mali, Nigeria and Senegal - there will be a ceremony honoring various educators, performing artists and activists including choreographer Bill T. Jones, child activist and force of nature Adelaide Sanford and award-winning actor Jeffrey Wright.
An all day event, there will be plenty of time to eat exotic cuisine, shop for beautiful fabric and catch a variety of talented musicians and performers. Reggae-bluegrass band City Billies (Brooklyn)will make your heart twang with rootsy rhythms, while African emcees Bajah and the Dry Eye Crew (Sierra Leone) and Blitz the Ambassador (Ghana) will get the crowd loud and rowdy with African hip-hop. Sahr Ngaujah, star of Broadway hit FELA! will also perform during the ceremony. To close the event, the award-winnin film Sex, Okra and Salted Butter will be shown.
As the icing on this beautiful multi-cultural cake, there will be a raffle for a round-trip ticket to Lagos, Nigeria!
See you in Brooklyn!
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