Each year on May 25, people all over the world celebrate the diversity, culture, and beauty of the African continent while spreading awareness of the progress made in the Pan-African movement. Cities across the globe were marking the 53rd African Liberation Day with lectures, music, food, and street marches. In Washington, D.C., people gathered on May 20, 2011 for an early celebration with panel discussions and the screening of the documentary "Apocolypse Africa." In New York, the Pan African Community of Central New York scheduled a day of food, culture, and music performances. Events were also planned for several European and African countries, including the United Kingdom, Spain, Ghana, Kenya, Tanzania, Guinea-Bissau, and South Africa. African Liberation Day, according to the official ALD website, marks "the onward progress of the liberation movement and symbolizes the determination of the people of Africa to free themselves from foreign domination and exploitation." The holiday, originally called "African Freedom Day," began after the First Conference of Independent States on April 15, 1958 in Accra, Ghana which was attended by African leaders and political activists representing Egypt, Ethiopia, Ghana, Liberia, Libya, Morocco, Sudan, Tunisia, the National Liberation Front of Algeria, and the United Peoples of Cameroon. Between 1958 and 1963, African nations struggled for their freedom from colonial powers, and 17 won their independence. 1960 became known as the "Year of Africa." In 1963, the date of African Freedom Day was changed to May 25 to coincide with the founding of the Organization of African Unity (OAU), the predecessor to the African Union. At that time, African Freedom Day was renamed African Liberation Day. The OAU was disbanded in 2001 and replaced by the current African Union (AU). In conjunction with African Liberation Day, the AU established "Africa Day," commemorating the founding of the OAU. This year, several activities are scheduled at the AU headquarters in Addis Ababa Ethiopia, under the theme, "Accelerating Youth Empowerment for Sustainable Development." General Carter Ham, commander of U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM), extended his congratulations to member nations of the African Union for their continued commitment to regional and international stability. "Africa Unity Day is an important recognition of the mission and role of the African Union, to help secure Africa's democracy, human rights and sustainable economy as it has taken up the mantle of continental leadership, integration, and cooperation," said Ham. "We continue to look for ways that the U.S. Africa Command can work with the African Union to help bring an end to intra-African conflict and to encourage the achievement of African solutions to African problems." The ALD website states that African Liberation Day is a "permanent mass institution in the world-wide Pan-African movement," and has helped to raise political awareness about issues affecting Africa. For more information on African Liberation Day, visit http://africanliberationday.net. "Independence must never be considered as an end in and of itself but as a stage, the very first stage of the people's revolutionary struggle."-- Kwame Nkrumah, first president of Ghana, and leader of the Gold Coast's movement for independence from Britain.