(THEME)
HOST:
Welcome to AMERICAN MOSAIC — a program in VOA Special Englishabout music and American life. And we answer your questions.
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This is Doug Johnson. On our showtoday, we report about some New Year’s celebrations to be held nextweek. And we answer a listener’s question about still anotherholiday Americans celebrate in December. But first –we tell about aspecial anniversary…the anniversary of flight.
Anniversary of Flight
HOST:
December Seventeenth was the one-hundredth-anniversary of theWright Brothers’ first successful powered flight. That anniversaryis being observed in several ways. Bob Cohen tells us about two ofthem.
ANNCR:
The Smithsonian Institution’s National Air and Space Museum isperhaps the most visited museum in the world. The building is inWashington D-C, near the Capitol building. The museum displaysaircraft important to the history of aviation.
More than nine-million people visit the Air and Space Museum eachyear. But the museum is not big enough to display all of theaircraft it has collected over the years.
As part of the observances of the one-hundredth anniversary ofthe Wright Brothers first flight, the Smithsonian opened a huge newbuilding in nearby Virginia. That building may solve the problem ofwhere to display the museum’s collection.
The building is named the Steven Udvar-Hazy (OOD-var HA-zee)Center. Mister Udvar-Hazy came to the United States from Hungary. Hewas very successful in the American aviation industry. He gavesixty-five-million dollars to help build the new museum. He saidthis was a way for him to thank America for the chances for successthat it provided him.
Although open to the public, the Udvar-Hazy Center is not yetfinished. It will be able to hold about three-hundred aircraft.About eighty aircraft are now in the building. These include theSR-Seventy-One “Black Bird,” the fastest aircraft ever built. It hasflown at more than three times the speed of sound.
On December seventeenth, exactlyone-hundred years after the Wright Brothers first flew, a group ofaviation experts tried to recreate their first flight. The attemptwas made at Kill Devil Hills in North Carolina. This is the sameplace where Orville and Wilbur Wright made their famous flight.
However, the attempt to recreate the flight failed. The expertstried to fly a copy of the Wright Brothers’ famous aircraft. But theweather did not cooperate. The aircraft began to move but could notlift into the air. Event organizers said they did not feeldisappointed by the failure. They said the Wright Brothers hadfailed three days before they were successful. They said they willtry again.
Kwanzaa
HOST:
Last week, we told about Hanukkah when we answered a questionabout celebrations from a listener in Nigeria. This week, we answera similar question, but give a different answer.
Sajid Iqbal from Lahore, Pakistan asks about events or occasionsthat Americans celebrate. One of these starts December twenty-sixth.It is called Kwanzaa.
The word “Kwanzaa” is Swahili. It means first fruits of theharvest. The first Kwanzaa celebration began on the day afterChristmas in nineteen-sixty-six. A small group of African-Americansin the western city of Los Angeles, California began the firstseven-day celebration. The celebration was not religious. Itspurpose was to honor black culture, especially the importance of thefamily.
Today, millions of African-Americans celebrate Kwanzaa. Familiesin Canada, Britain, France and Africa also celebrate it. The holidaycontinues from December twenty-sixth through January first. Kwanzaadoes not replace Christmas. Most people who celebrate Kwanzaa alsocelebrate Christmas.
Kwanzaa is a time for black families to discuss seven goals tolive by all year. These are unity, personal independence, jointresponsibility, cooperative econonics, purpose, creativity andfaith.
On each of the seven days of Kwanzaa, family members gather tolight a black, red or green candle in a special candle holder. Eachday, the family discusses one of the goals. People may also gettogether for a party and enjoy a holiday meal.
College professor Maulana Karenga developed Kwanzaa. He saidKwanzaa’s goal of unity includes unity in the family, the localcommunity, the nation and the African community around the world.
He also said that celebrating Kwanzaa will not solve the socialproblems of black people. But he said that honoring the goals ofKwanzaa will make people more creative and productive citizens.
New Year’s Traditions
HOST:
The year two-thousand-four will begin next Thursday, Januaryfirst. Many Americans are already planning to celebrate. FaithLapidus tells us about some of their plans.
ANNCR:
On Wednesday night, millions of Americans will dress in theirbest clothes and go out to celebrate the coming of the new year.
Some will go to private parties to eat, drink and dance. Otherswill go to a hotel or public eating place for dinner and dancing.Many such places have bands and singers to perform on New Year’sEve. They play songs like this one.
(FUNKY NEW YEAR)
Americans recognize the dangers of drinking alcohol and thendriving a car. So hotels in many cities offer people a way to enjoythe party and stay safe. They urge people to stay in the hotel forthe night. That way, the celebrators can drive home safely the nextmorning.
Some people take part in public celebrations known as FirstNight. People in the northeastern city of Boston created the FirstNight celebration more than twenty-five years ago. Such celebrationsinclude art, puppets, magicians, storytellers and all kinds ofmusic. Those who take part say First Night celebrations are foreveryone. They say it gives people more to cheer about than justbeginning the new year at midnight.
Whatever way Americans choose to celebrate the new year, onetradition is common. At midnight, everyone cheers and makes noise.
(NEW YEAR’S CROWD)
They shout out wishes for a happy and healthy new year. And theyjoin in singing this traditional new year’s song, “Auld Lang Syne.”
(AULD LANG SYNE)
HOST:
This is Doug Johnson, wishing all of you a happy, healthy andprosperous new year.
I hope you enjoyed AMERICAN MOSAIC. Join us again next week forVOA’s radio magazine in Special English.
Our program today was written by Nancy Steinbach and PaulThompson. Paul Thompson was our producer. And our engineer was EvaNenicka, and you can download all of our program script text andaudio files from WWW.VOA-STORY.COM, I am Doug Johnson.