Boston is home to a large population of African immigrants from Somalia, Ethiopia, Ghana, Nigeria, and dozens of other countries on the African continent and around the world.
But the city’s African diaspora is “so disconnected as a community,” said Mireille Tushiminina, senior coordinator of Boston’s annual African Festival.
That’s why 12 years ago, Tushiminina decided to start a festival that would “create common ground,” a place where African Bostonians who speak different languages and have different cultural traditions could come and celebrate together. Tushiminina, along with the Shalupe Foundation, with whom he has worked for many years, launched the first Boston African Festival in 2010. The Shalupe Foundation focuses on supporting refugees from the Democratic Republic of the Congo fleeing violence, particularly gender violence.
This year, the organizers of the Boston African Festival expect more than 25,000 attendees for the event on August 27, which will take place from 9 am to 8 pm.
The festival will take place on Boston Common and will feature performances by several Boston-based and international bands, including the Kotoko Brass and Akwaaba Ensemble, dance by the local OrigiNation Dance Troupe, spoken word poetry, acrobatic shows, and children’s competitions. Local non-profit organizations such as the New England International Institute, a refugee relief organization, and the Seven Hills Foundation, a group that supports people with disabilities, will be organizing information booths around the festival grounds. .
Vendors from the African diaspora will also be on Boston Common on August 27, selling everything from food to jewelry. One of them, fashion label The House of Nahdra, will present their designs in a fashion show near the end of the festival’s lineup.
Tushiminina, a long-time Boston native, believes the festival provides a crucial opportunity for Boston’s diverse community of African immigrants to “come together,” “come together,” and address the shared issues they face with a stronger voice.
Bostonian Africans working together, Tushiminina said, means more change is possible: “When you bring in a critical mass, people tend to shake and move.”
Of course, unifying Boston’s African community is not the same as “bumping everyone together,” as festival co-host Leonard Tshitenge often explains. Tshitenge also serves as one of the festival’s programming managers, and in that role he asks himself, “how do you make sure those who don’t get attention, who don’t shine, are visible?”
He said this year’s event will provide opportunities for the broader African community in Boston to experience and enjoy the food, music, dance and more from African countries and cultures that are often underrepresented.
For the first time in the festival’s history, a female DJ will preside over the tunes, a change Tushiminina is particularly excited about.
DJ Lady Ly has been coming to the AFOB for about 10 years and plans to bring the ‘versatility’ she is known for to this year’s celebration. She said that she likes cross-cultural “mixing”, like playing soca music from Trinidad along with Afrobeats from West Africa.
Tushiminina said the festival also has a newly announced female co-host, Vanessa Silva.
The festival currently has two main sponsors: the Boston Cultural Council and the Massachusetts Cultural Council. (ArtsEmerson also contributed.) Tushiminina’s team of 10 volunteers raise funds and help finance the event out of their own pocket.
“We ended up, as individuals, supporting the event because we believe in [it]”Tushiminina said.
First-time attendees, he said, have often told him how excited they are to discover new people, artists, and organizations in their community that they never knew existed. In addition to local nonprofit organizations setting up information booths throughout the festival, healthcare providers and community organizers have the opportunity to come and talk about their work during the festival’s open mic periods.
Collectively, the festival has helped build a huge “network,” Tushiminina said, which strengthens the entire African community in Greater Boston. If a person Looking For free legal help or a restaurant offering a taste of home, the festival’s array of vendors and community experts will know someone who can help.
Joy Ashford can be reached at joy.ashford@globe.com. Follow them on Twitter @joy_ashford.
