by Ford Mauldin

Umoja is Swahili meaning unity; unity is to be in harmony and of one accord. We are best known for our summer festival and unity is the heart of this event with a history of more than a decade of successful celebrations. The Umoja/Unity Committee is an all-volunteer arts and cultural organization.

While Umoja puts a heavy emphasis on the African American population, it strives to be the most diverse festival in the area. The commitees’ dedication was so strong that East Tennessee State University approached us to become a vital part of the festival, and for the past two years recognized storytellers have been a part of our celebration.

This festival began in 1978 as an annual Unity Picnic. Members of the local NAACP, Concerned Citizens Group, Herb Greenlee of Carver Recreation Center, and other community residents all played a part in the community picnic. It was held around August 8th of each year with the participants providing things such as food, covered dishes, games, and lots of fun.

After several years the community event faded out. Then, in 1997, some of the original founders decided to revive the event with a little different format, maintaining a celebration of ethnic diversity and a universal love of life.

The revival process brought the unity picnic of days past under the new name of Umoja/Unity Day Festival.

A celebration of three days offering a multitude of food and merchandise vendors, a variety of entertainers, thousands of people of various races and cultures, finalized with church services on Sunday.

 Umoja has proven to be a great asset to our community and we take great pride in being a part of this community, the region, and the great state of Tennessee.

DID YOU KNOW?

Founding Father, Dr. Hezekiah Hankal

Dr. Hezekiah Hankal, one of the founding fathers of Johnson City, helped start a number of historic black churches throughout Northeast Tennessee.

Born a slave in 1825, he was reared in the Dutch home of James and Nancy Hankal in what is now Gray, Tennessee. Hankal was fluent in Dutch and several foreign languages. He purchased town lot number 12 from Henry Johnson in June 1869 for $300 as a site for the Colored Christian Church, and he was an avid checker player at the park area, now known as Carver Recreation Park.