About UMOJA MN
Our Vision and Mission
Empowering, educating, and connecting adoptive, foster, and kinship families in Minnesota with children of Black heritage community, culture, and ethnicity.
Partnership with Department of Children Youth and Families
Our Funding: We are supported by a generous grant from the Minnesota Department of Children Youth & Families that covers the cost of camp programming and lodging for families who are parenting at least one child with Black heritage through adoption, foster care, or kinship care and who started their adoption/foster/kinship care process in Minnesota.
UMOJA [OO-mo-jah] is Swahili for unity. As one of the seven principles of Kwanzaa, many African Americans have centered the value of unity in their families, communities, and in the entirety of the African American race. We believe that our UMOJA MN Black Heritage Camp honors this value as we pursue the unity of all races.
UMOJA MN inspires families to reflect on the beautiful ways African Americans have contributed to the development of humanity. We believe that by intentionally reflecting on the ingenuity and artistry of people of color from both the past and present, families are empowered to raise children of color who are proud of the skin they are in.
We believe that representation offers long-term psychological benefits for all people. For minorities, racial representation is rare. UMOJA MN offers an opportunity for youth to be led, taught by, and build relationships with teachers, care-takers, and community members of color. We are also proud of the way that UMOJA MN cultivates relationships amidst transracial families, encouraging parents to continue conversations around race and adoption long after their weekend long experience.
We Serve
- Transracial families raising Black and multi-racial youth
- All children of African heritage
- Kinship, adoptive, and foster parents, and siblings
- Families preparing for adoption or foster care
- Black adoptees and their families
For Campers of Color
- To promote positive racial identity development
- To build relationships with other Black campers
- To promote a safe place for honest conversation
- To learn from teachers, artists, experts and entrepreneurs of color
For Parents
- To learn the necessity of and gain tools to navigate lifelong racial awareness
- To become more knowledgeable of basic skin and hair care for Black children
- To engage with the beauty of Black culture
UMOJA MN accomplishes these goals by providing a powerful weekend experience for the entire family, which includes adult learning opportunities, child and youth programming, and large group cultural celebrations.
We are the only culture camp of this nature in Minnesota and one of only four nationwide. While only three days in length, it is our hope that this camp will springboard families into a lifelong pursuit of cultural competency; equipped to address subtle and overt forms of racism.
