Issued by City of York Council
Musicians and dancers from across the globe will be celebrating diversity and faith at the first City of York International Festival of Faith and Culture on Saturday 27 April.
From 11am-5pm at Parliament Street, a central stage will feature performances by Chinese instrumentalist Xicheng Li, York City Gospel Choir, Turkish music and dance, English folk bands and African drummers plus a puppet show and Arabic fashion show.
Among the activities will be face painting, storytelling, henna art and badge making too. In addition, information stalls run by groups representing different faiths, churches, communities and organisations will run alongside speakers from a range of faith groups and places of worship.
Councillor Sonja Crisp, City of York Council’s cabinet member for Leisure, Culture and Tourism, said: “This celebratory event has been jointly organised by City of York Council together with the talents of students from York St John University and the University of York, to showcase the work of community, cultural and charitable groups.
“As York grows in its diversity, we need to celebrate and promote understanding of the many cultures which enrich our city. This festival is a wonderful addition to our existing work around our annual Holocaust Memorial Day commemorations and the council’s Equality Scheme launched earlier this year. We hope that this celebration becomes a regular feature of the city centre’s vibrant cultural offer.”
Rev Lukas Njenga, chair of the International Festival of Faith and Culture and Chaplain of York St John University said: “It is estimated that the people of York speak about 600 dialects and are from almost every continent of the world. This day marks the beginning of an open dialogue where people will seek to understand each other, support one another and sensitively respect each other’s differences and uniqueness.
“It aims to profile the city’s international citizens, faith communities and student groups and marks the beginning of an open dialogue where people will seek to understand each other, support one another and sensitively respect each other’s differences and uniqueness.”
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