history making history

The Akron African American Cultural Festival (AACF) is part of a larger strategy to reach underserved communities in Northeast Ohio. The AACF has its origins in the cultural explosion of community events originating after the institutionalization of Civil Rights policy implementation in United States. In Akron, the Festival began in 1981, with community activists who saw the need to create events that provided cultural uplift. The University of Akron and Kent State University had and still have African Studies programs that provided the academic backbone and historical backdrop about the benefits of education opportunities and promoted accurate information about Africa—given the lack of black studies as a discipline in public school settings. The Festival served as a vehicle to understanding. Simultaneous with that mission was the need to use the event to provide information, particularly about health concerns. The African American community nationally suffers from cancers (specifically breast and prostate), hypertension, Type 2 diabetes, and obesity—all in numbers disproportionate to their quantitative numbers. In 1995, the AACF incorporated a Health Pavilion, where free screenings for breast cancer, and HIV- Aids; test evaluations for lead , healthy food choices are offered. 

The Akron African American Cultural Festival (AACF) is part of a larger strategy to reach underserved communities in Northeast Ohio. The AACF has its origins in the cultural explosion of community events originating after the institutionalization of Civil Rights policy implementation in United States. In Akron, the Festival began in 1981, with community activists who saw the need to create events that provided cultural uplift. The University of Akron and Kent State University had and still have African Studies programs that provided the academic backbone and historical backdrop about the benefits of education opportunities and promoted accurate information about Africa—given the lack of black studies as a discipline in public school settings. The Festival served as a vehicle to understanding. Simultaneous with that mission was the need to use the event to provide information, particularly about health concerns. The African American community nationally suffers from cancers (specifically breast and prostate), hypertension, Type 2 diabetes, and obesity—all in numbers disproportionate to their quantitative numbers. In 1995, the AACF incorporated a  Health Pavilion, where free screenings for breast cancer, and HIV- Aids; test evaluations for lead , healthy food choices are offered. 

Demographics support the rationale of the Health Pavilion: African American population in northeast Ohio, is 197,859 of which 31.5%are Akron, OH residents which is 12.2% of Ohio’s population. The average age of this community is 32 years old. Of 28,964 African American males and 33,684 women, 18% are between the ages of 18-35 years for men and for women in the same age range 23% (or 7, 88. High school graduation rate for African American residents 25 years or older is high at 85%. Over half of the population is female, with 39% of all households headed by women. 

Thus the need for continued outreach using non-invasive, creative approaches to health education. The AACF is a tactical way to continue to reach those at the epicenter of new obesity, cancers, heart disease cases. The AACF connects with service providers, businesses and county health agencies who utilize the event to spread information about Summit County health initiatives, offices and information for the public at large. 

In 2010, festival organizers accepted an offer from the City of Akron to relocate festival operations to Lock 3. The justification being that we had outgrown Lane Field with increasing numbers of attendees, Second, Downtown is centrally located, Thirdly, the move presented an opportunity to diversify our reach to a larger cohort of city residents, and lastly, it lessened costs for infrastructure. Since 2010 the Festival has utilized Lock 3 as a location.

The Co-Vid pandemic had a global and local impact that cannot be understated. Most of our service providers, vendors, cultural performers and attendees were impacted. The Festival was income sustaining for the abovementioned sectors. The AAACA closed external operations from June 2020 to July 2022. The Festival offers a Youth Pavilion with fun activities, a chess tournament, food tastings, cultural activities, culminating in a back to school backpack giveaway. Free haircuts support the climate of the event as open , giving and sharing. Families utilize the event as a way to connect with family members via reunions and gatherings. The event culminates in a concert activity on both evenings. 

The AACF stage presents regional and national performers. Recruiting from the northeast Ohio Area. Recent national acts include CONFUNKSHUN,SWITCH, ZAPP and WAR. 

Food and merchandise vendors offer attendees with goods services and are also opportunities for high school students to fulfill volunteer service hours. Youth groups, community organizations faith based institutions , sororities and fraternities use the event as a way to augment their annual budgets by vending. 80% of the vendors come from a 100 mile radius of Akron. 

The AACF event has buy in from civic, county, banking, faith-based, business and public organizations. The diversity of participants, funders and community residents indicates an impact wider than the geographic location of Akron, OH.