Gina Loring Performance at Al-Babtain Library

More than 150 people packed Kuwait’s Al-Babtain Library on February 3 for an evening of African-American poetry and music in celebration of U.S. Black History Month. Headline performer Gina Loring, a California-based poet, singer and writer, delighted the Kuwaiti audience with renditions of her award-winning spiritual-inspired poetry, including "Somewhere There is a Poem." 

She also performed several of her original songs that showcased the Hip-Hop and Jazz inspiration of her art.  The evening was kicked off with remarks by Chargé d’Affaires Alan Misenheimer who honored the achievements of African-American men and women.  “Their sacrifices and accomplishments,” he said, “shaped America into the inclusive multi-cultural nation that it is today.”  

Members of the U.S. Embassy and the private American community in Kuwait read and performed more than a dozen works that depicted the breadth and depth of the Black-American experience.  Black History Month has been celebrated each February in the United States since 1976, though its roots go as far back as 1926.  It serves as a reminder of the struggle against racial and other prejudices and affords an opportunity to recognize the stellar contributions of people of African heritage to American culture and society.