Afro Fest celebrating African cultures offers 'blend of cuisines' at Dogwood Dell, organizer says

RICHMOND, Va. -- Afro Fest, a celebration of African cultures, returned to Dogwood Dell on Saturday,

African Community Network President Nana Derby said the festival does not just celebrate the cultures of continental Africa, but all peoples of African ancestry.

"So we have our members who are native African Americans coming from America," Derby explained. "We have Haitians, we have Jamaicans, we have people from all over insofar as they want to identify with us."

FULL INTERVIEW: Afro Fest at Dogwood Dell celebrates African cultures

Derby said the event has art, clothing, jewelry and food.

"The food is special because I know that some of us would want to taste delicious African cuisines," Derby said. "We have fufu we have, of course, chicken made a Ghanaian or Nigerian or South African or Malian way... We also have some Caribbean dishes, so it's a mixture of cuisines from around diasporic Africa."

Derby said the festival first started seven years ago, but that it "cut a break" for COVID.

The African Community Network, with members from 54 African countries, organizes the event and offers year-round programs, including leadership, education, economic development and health fairs.

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