| R 044 |
| 2025 -- H 5149 Enacted 01/23/2025 |
| H O U S E R E S O L U T I O N |
| CELEBRATING FUNDA FEST 27 AND THE CONTRIBUTIONS OF THE RI BLACK STORYTELLERS (RIBS) FROM JANUARY 17TH-26TH, 2025 |
Introduced By: Representatives Morales, Shekarchi, Blazejewski, Chippendale, Biah, Abney, Giraldo, Cruz, Stewart, and Solomon |
| Date Introduced: January 23, 2025 |
| WHEREAS, RI Black Storytellers (RIBS) was founded in 1998, and is a nonprofit |
| organization whose mission is to promote “the awareness, appreciation, and application of Black |
| Storytelling in Rhode Island through performance, as well as through educational and cultural |
| experiences”; and |
| WHEREAS, Funda Fest is “the flagship of RIBS programming”, and over the years, has |
| reached over 120,000 people with international, national, regional, and local artists at various |
| career stages, representing the diversity of Black storytelling; and |
| WHEREAS, Funda is a South African Zulu word meaning “to learn” or “to teach”. Funda |
| Fest is a two-week celebration which includes seven statewide public performances in partnership |
| with local organizations in each city or town, and annually reaches a statewide audience of |
| thousands; and |
| WHEREAS, This year heralds the 27th celebration of Funda Fest, and provides a platform |
| for Black people to shape the narrative of their own history and promote awareness, appreciation, |
| and application of Black storytelling through an educational and cultural experience, with a place |
| and time to learn the history, values, and traditions that have often been non-existent in |
| mainstream literature; now, therefore be it |
| RESOLVED, That this House of Representatives of the State of Rhode Island hereby |
| joins the thousands of Rhode Islanders in celebrating and supporting Funda Fest 27 from January |
| 17th through the 26th, 2025. We moreover urge all Rhode Islanders to take this time to listen, |
| experience, and learn generational Black history, values and traditions through the power of |
| storytelling from the “keepers of the culture”; and be it further |
| RESOLVED, That the Secretary of State be and hereby is authorized and directed to |
| transmit a duly certified copy of this resolution to Rhode Island Black Storytellers (RIBS). |
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| LC000890 |
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