The word uhuru is Swahili for "freedom". Uhuru's first meeting was held the third Saturday in March 1994 at the Oxon Hill Library in Oxon Hill, MD. A brief notice in the Quilters Newsletter Magazine prompted Carol Williams to write to Barbara Pietila, founder of the National Association of African American Quilters (now defunct) in Baltimore, MD. Carol sent handwritten invitations to other NAAAQ members to form a NAAQ chapter in the Washington, DC area. Uhuru was the result of that invitation.

The founding members were Carol Williams, Constance Tucker, Bennie Mann, Melody Boyd, Cynthia Catlin, Jeanette Cumberbatch (deceased), Barbara Brown, Paula Sherman, Marie Banks (deceased), Jennifer Morris, and Mazie Hines.  As of January 2024, the membership stands at 117.

The Guild held its first quilt show in 1995 at Oxon Hill High School, Oxon Hill, MD. Subsequent shows were in 2003 at the Comfort Inn, Beltsville, MD; and 2008 at Lake Arbor Elementary, Mitchellville, MD. In thirty years, the Guild has sponsored 10 retreats, numerous exhibits, workshops, demonstrations, trunk shows at the Smithsonian, the National Zoo, the Corcoran Art Gallery, various quilt guilds, churches, and branches of the Prince George’s County Memorial Library System and Charles County Library System, and events sponsored by the Maryland National Capital Park and Planning Commission (MNCPPC), the Accokeek Foundation, and the US Park Service for Juneteenth, African American History, Frederick Douglass Day, and Women’s History. The Guild completed two community quilts which hang in the Frederick Douglass House and the Mary McLeod Bethune Council House. The Guild has been a regular exhibitor at the Original Sewing and Quilting Expo since 1996. Each year Uhuru members donate quilts, afghans, and other items to various organizations in the area such as Saint Anne’s, veterans’ groups, homeless shelters, the Arc, Chrysalis House, Sleep in Heavenly Peace, and support efforts to teach quilting and other needle arts in the community. In keeping with the mission statement, future goals of the organization include finding a permanent home to continue the work of preserving and sharing the rich traditions, culture, and history of African American quilting.