Bill Text: NY J02590 | 2023-2024 | General Assembly | Introduced

---

Bill Title: Commending the Brooklyn Academy of Music upon the occasion of hosting the 2024 DanceAfrica Festival to be celebrated May 24-27, 2024, and paying tribute to this year's Opening Night Honoree, Ms. Amma D. McKen

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Passed) 2024-05-29 - ADOPTED [J02590 Detail]

Download: New_York-2023-J02590-Introduced.html

---

Senate Resolution No. 2590

BY: Senator PARKER

        COMMENDING  the Brooklyn Academy of Music upon the
        occasion of hosting the 2024 DanceAfrica Festival to
        be celebrated May 24-27, 2024, and paying tribute to
        this year's Opening Night  Honoree,  Ms.    Amma  D.
        McKen

  WHEREAS,  It is the sense of this Legislative Body to call attention
to those events which serve to enhance the cultural  enrichment  of  the
State of New York and preserve the heritage of African Americans; and

  WHEREAS,  Attendant  to  such  concern,  and in full accord with its
long-standing traditions, this  Legislative  Body  is  justly  proud  to
commend  the  Brooklyn Academy of Music upon the occasion of hosting the
2024 DanceAfrica Festival to be celebrated May 24-27, 2024; and

  WHEREAS, Brooklyn Academy of Music (BAM)  is  a  multi-faceted  arts
center  committed to serving the Brooklyn community; for over 150 years,
it has provided world-class programming in theater, dance, music, opera,
and film while showcasing the work of emerging  artists  and  innovative
modern masters; and

  WHEREAS,  The  2024  DanceAfrica  Festival is hosted by the Brooklyn
Academy of Music and is  the  nation's  largest  festival  dedicated  to
African  diasporic  dance  and  music; it opens Brooklyn's stages to the
ancestral history and vital living artistry of Cameroon; and

  WHEREAS, Now in its 47th year, DanceAfrica  explores  the  past  and
present  of Central African history, arts, and culture, as symbolized by
the  calabash,  a  vessel   of   mystical,   practical,   and   cultural
significance; and

  WHEREAS, Brooklyn Academy of Music partners with longtime neighbors,
first-time visitors, the DanceAfrica Council of Elders, and our partners
at  the  Museum  of  Contemporary  African  Diasporan  Arts  (MoCADA) in
Brooklyn and The Billie Holiday Theatre (formerly Restoration  Arts)  to
create  the  nation's  largest  festival  of  African  dance  as well as
Brooklyn's unofficial start of the summer season; and

  WHEREAS, This year's Honoree, Amma D. McKen, a member of the Council
of Elders of DanceAfrica, was born in  Brooklyn,  New  York;  she  began
studying  as a singer and dancer under the tutelage of various elders of
the tradition and  took  a  holistic  and  contextual  approach  to  the
tradition,  learning  the genre as both an art form and an aspect of her
spiritual practice as a devotee and initiate; and

  WHEREAS, Amma D. McKen is the director and co-founder of Omiyesa,  a
cultural music group established in 1972; she was also a founding member
of  the  International  African  American  Ballet which performed in the
1970s and early 1980s; as a priestess of Yemonja since 1979, she is also
a dancer, singer, professional  tie-dye  artist,  clothing  and  costume
designer,  natural  hair  stylist, and owner of Abeokuta Enterprises, an
African-inspired apparel company; and

  WHEREAS, Amma D. McKen holds several  roles  and  titles  in  Yoruba
tradition  and spirituality, including the title of Akpon, a lead singer
and officiator for the drumming and dancing celebrations; the  Akpon  is
responsible for teaching the tradition to other practitioners; and

  WHEREAS,  In  2009,  Amma  D.  McKen  was  selected  as  one  of the
recipients of the nation's highest honor in folk and  traditional  arts,
the National Endowment for the Arts National Heritage Fellowship, chosen
for   her   artistic   excellence  and  contributions  to  her  artistic
traditions; and

  WHEREAS, For more than 50 years, Amma  D.  McKen  has  added  value,
knowledge, cultural texture, and spirit to the traditional Yoruba/Lukumi
community, earning her the reputation as an elder in the community; and

  WHEREAS,  The  DanceAfrica  Festival  is  a  cherished  event  which
provides a uniquely warm and safe environment  in  which  to  enjoy  the
music,  dance,  arts, crafts, flavors, colors, laughter, and love of the
African Diaspora with family and visitors from across  the  globe;  now,
therefore, be it

  RESOLVED,  That  this Legislative Body pause in its deliberations to
commend the Brooklyn Academy of Music upon the occasion of  hosting  the
2024  DanceAfrica  Festival to be celebrated May 24-27, 2024, and paying
tribute to this year's Opening Night Honoree, Ms. Amma D. McKen; and  be
it further

  RESOLVED,  That  copies  of  this Resolution, suitably engrossed, be
transmitted to the Brooklyn Academy of Music and Ms. Amma D. McKen.