African culture focus of weekend festival at MacEwan University
The work of last year’s Canadian Spoken Word Champion was on stage Friday night, opening an African cultural festival being held this weekend at MacEwan University.
Spoken-word champ Ifrah Hussein performed at Africanival 2018’s Orality, a spoken-word night hosted by Edmonton’s poet laureate, Ahmed Knowmadic.
Beyond Friday night’s events, the festival will be open to the public Saturday and Sunday, featuring a fashion show, food vendors, film screenings and more.
Orality will host band MelAfrique and poets Nasra Adem, a 23-yearold multidisciplinary artist and director of the Black Arts Matter Festival, as well as Omar Farah, a 21-year-old Somali-Canadian poet and 2017 Edmonton Slam Champion.
“The best way to celebrate culture is art, and spoken-word poetry does that easily,” Knowmadic said. “Poetry night is just going to be entertaining, there’s going to be a lot of laughter and fun. It’s enjoyment.”
Festival spokesperson and Sierra Leonean Association president Kemoh Mansaray said the festival’s goal is to bring Edmonton’s African communities together. For greater Edmonton, another goal is to show Africa as a diverse group of countries, rather than just a continent, he added.
“We love what the city is doing with promoting diversity and inclusion,” Mansaray said. “This is one way we want to play our own part in showcasing that diversity.”
Harriet Tinka, another Africanival spokesperson, said an addition to this year’s festival is a fashion show featuring about five designers. Looks will include evening wear and styles that have both Western and African elements.
Tinka said there will be at least three film showings by African filmmakers at Africanival as well.
The festival takes place outdoors at MacEwan University, 10581 107 St.