STORY IS
MEMORY
IN MOTION.

Preserving, practicing, and passing forward African and African American oral tradition through story, education, festival, community, and intergenerational connection.

Enter Our Story Festival + Events

AFRICAN ORAL TRADITION / BLACK MEMORY / COMMUNITY TRANSMISSION

STORY • MEMORY • CULTURE • COMMUNITY • ANCESTORS • YOUTH • RHYTHM • HISTORY • STORY • MEMORY • CULTURE • COMMUNITY •

Festival / 2026

Sunday, October 11, 2026

Come gather in the circle.

Join the Black Storytellers Alliance for a celebration of storytelling, rhythm, culture, and community at WE WIN Institute's new building in Minneapolis.

Click the festival flyer to sign up.

Festival Sign Up

Black Storytellers Alliance Festival 2026 flyer: Sunday, October 11, 2026, 11:00 AM to 5:00 PM at WE WIN Institute, 2801 S Wayzata Blvd, Minneapolis, Minnesota. Elder Showcase at 11:00 AM, Workshops noon to 2:00 PM, and Youth Showcase 2:30 PM to 4:30 PM.

Click flyer to sign up

The Tradition / 01

A Living Oral Tradition

The story lives
because we tell it.

Black Storytellers Alliance carries forward a tradition in which story is more than entertainment. Story holds history, teaches values, preserves identity, gathers generations, and keeps community memory alive.

Read the BSA history →

✦

Story

Black storytelling, oral history, folktale, lived experience, spoken word, and the creative voice.

◉

Memory

Honoring elders, ancestors, history, cultural knowledge, and the experiences carried across generations.

◆

Community

Creating spaces for youth, families, storytellers, artists, schools, neighborhoods, and cultural institutions.

Ancestral Knowledge / 02

Transmission

The griot is an archive that can speak.

BSA’s roots connect the African Oral Tradition with Black cultural life in Minnesota. The redesigned site treats that history as living knowledge — not material locked in the past.

01 Origins + BSA History → 02 Nothando Zulu Storytelling Institute → 03 Programs + Services →

Living Archive / 03

Explore the Work

Many doors.
One tradition.

The historical pages from the previous BSA website remain available and are presented through one modern visual system.

ARCHIVE / 01Black Master Storytellers FestivalFestival history, events, announcements, and community gatherings.EXPLORE → COMMUNITY / 02MembershipJoin the alliance and support the continuation of Black storytelling.JOIN → LAND / 03Karamu GardenGrowing food, community, stewardship, and shared knowledge.ENTER → YOUTH / 04Schools + YouthStorytelling experiences that connect young people to culture and imagination.LEARN → PRACTICE / 05Programs + ServicesStorytelling, workshops, cultural education, and community engagement.EXPLORE →

Nguzo Saba / 04

Kwanzaa Education

Seven principles.
A living practice.

The educational archive from the previous BSA website remains part of the new site, presented as a connected cultural learning experience.

01Umoja→ 02Kujichagulia→ 03Ujima→ 04Ujamaa→ 05Nia→ 06Kuumba→ 07Imani→

Community / 05

Keep the Story Moving

There is a place for you in the circle.

Attend a festival. Bring storytelling into your school or organization. Become a member. Support the storytellers carrying the tradition forward.

Become a Member Connect with BSA

From the Archive / 06

Latest stories + updates.

View all →

Jul 13, 2023

Elementor #15065

33rd Annual Black Master Storytellers FestivalLine Up Toni SimmonsValerie TutsonGran’ Daddy JuneBugKunama MtendajiNothando ZuluDr Gcina Mhlophe Previous slide Next slide Toni Simmons

Read story →

Jan 08, 2023