The OU community is celebrating a holiday honoring African-American culture and heritage tonight at the 11th annual Kwanzaa Ball.

“It’s not a religious holiday, but it’s a cultural event that does not require people to compromise their religion or beliefs,” said D’Andre Fisher, human relations and business junior. “This celebration excludes no one and it encourages everyone to celebrate.”

Kwanzaa, meaning the first fruits of the harvest, was created in 1966 as a way for African-Americans to connect to their African roots and celebrate their cultural heritage.

The Kwanzaa Ball, hosted by Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity and Zeta Phi Beta sorority, begins at 7 p.m. in the Molly Shi Boren Ballroom of the Oklahoma Memorial union.

“It’s a formal ball that presents the opportunity to unite the African-American community and the community as a whole,” Fisher said.

Fisher, Kwanzaa Ball chairman representing Alpha Phi Alpha, said event activities include dinner, a speech by Robert Con Davis-Undiano, a jazz band performance and members from OU’s African Student Association will bring African art to display.

“I enjoy how we are bringing together another culture and bringing it to the campus,” Fisher said. “And just trying to bring awareness to what Kwanzaa is.”

Fisher said there are usually anywhere from 225 to 275 people at the event each year and this year they are hoping and expecting more people to come.

“Kwanzaa is not a religion, it’s just a culture and an awareness of the African culture,” he said. “That alone just lets me know that my heritage is still strong today. I really enjoy this type of event and I am so grateful that OU is allowing us to host this event and has been for 11 years. That’s really a blessing.”

Nicole Minter, human relations senior and Kwanzaa Ball chairwoman for Zeta Phi Beta, said she attended the ball last year and found it to be very informative.

“I always thought Kwanzaa was more a religious thing than a cultural thing,” she said.

Minter said she got to see African dancers perform for the first time at the event last year.

“I think the Kwanzaa Ball is a good thing to kind of promote unity because a lot of people misunderstand Kwanzaa,” she said. “Whether it brings one or two groups together or numerous groups together on campus, I think it’s doing its job to promote unity.”

Minter said she thinks they have had a lot of support for this event and she said she hopes that support continues this year.

“There are seven days of principles of Kwanzaa,” she said. “It’s more of a community-based holiday instead of religious-based to bring the community together as one, which is why I think it will be good to bring this to the OU campus.”

Sasha Orjiako, petroleum engineering and mathematics senior, said she was a participant in one of the acts performed last year by the University Gospel Choir.

“I think it was a very culturally diverse event,” Orjiako said. “There were a lot of different parts in the event that celebrated different cultures. Kwanzaa is full of tradition and it’s a holiday that is celebrated differently all across the world.”