[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 82 (Thursday, June 10, 1999)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1229]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


                          A TRIBUTE TO ODUNDE

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                          HON. ROBERT A. BRADY

                            of pennsylvania

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, June 10, 1999

  Mr. BRADY of Pennsylvania. Mr. Speaker, I rise to honor Odunde, 
Philadelphia's oldest and largest community-based festival, on the 
occasion of its 24th anniversary. The word Odunde originates from the 
Yoruba people of Nigeria, West Africa, and means Happy New Year. The 
festival is a recreation of traditional West African cultural festivals 
that celebrate the coming of another year through music, dance and 
prayer. Held in one of South Philadelphia's historically significant 
African American neighborhoods, Odunde attracts over 300,000 people 
annually and it has gained the reputation of being one of the largest 
African American street festivals in the United States.
  Known for its authentic African marketplace with vendors selling a 
variety of artifacts, African clothing, educational materials and 
African, Caribbean and African American food, Odunde represents a 
tremendous economic opportunity for entrepreneurs.
  Odunde is a vital cultural and educational experience that has become 
an important part of the Philadelphia experience. Odunde celebrates the 
rich cultural legacy of Africans of the diaspora and the experience 
enriches us all.

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