A Good Cry

December 9, 2024 9:44 PM

Nikki Giovanni, poet, author, and thinker, has died aged 81.
posted by biogeo (25 comments total)

I was in the audience when she spoke and performed her poetry immediately after the April 16, 2007 mass shooting at Virginia Tech. It was powerful and important for our grieving as a community, and I'm grateful still that she was there for us.

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posted by biogeo at 9:52 PM on December 9, 2024 [7 favorites]

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posted by BlahLaLa at 9:55 PM on December 9, 2024

'No complaints'

(For Gwendolyn Brooks, 1917—2001)

"maybe there is something about the seventh of June: Gwen,
Prince and me . . . or maybe people just have to be born at some
time . . . and there are only three hundred sixty-five days or three
sixty-six every four years or so . . . meaning that some things
happen at the same time in the same rising sign . . . and the same
houses in Gemini . . . but some of us might also consider the
possibility of reincarnating revolving restructuring that spirit . . .
reshaping that spirit . . . releasing that spirit . . . tucking the use-
less inside and when the useless pushes out again we restructure
again and poetry and song and praisesong go on . . . because it is
the right thing to do

we always will cry when a great heart . . . a good soul . . . one of
the premier poets of her age restructures . . . reincarnates . . .
revolves into a resolve that we now carry in our hearts . . . as all
great women and men are alive . . . not by biology but remembrance . . ."
posted by clavdivs at 10:12 PM on December 9, 2024 [6 favorites]

RIP. I discovered her when Dance Poem got sampled into Jamie xx & the Avalanches' All You Children.
posted by myopicman at 10:26 PM on December 9, 2024 [1 favorite]

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posted by Kattullus at 11:14 PM on December 9, 2024

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posted by away for regrooving at 11:24 PM on December 9, 2024

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posted by socialjusticeworrier at 11:32 PM on December 9, 2024

Nikki-Rosa

childhood remembrances are always a drag
if you’re Black
you always remember things like living in Woodlawn
with no inside toilet
and if you become famous or something
they never talk about how happy you were to have
your mother
all to yourself and
how good the water felt when you got your bath
from one of those
big tubs that folk in chicago barbecue in
and somehow when you talk about home
it never gets across how much you
understood their feelings
as the whole family attended meetings about Hollydale
and even though you remember
your biographers never understand
your father’s pain as he sells his stock
and another dream goes
And though you’re poor it isn’t poverty that
concerns you
and though they fought a lot
it isn’t your father’s drinking that makes any difference
but only that everybody is together and you
and your sister have happy birthdays and very good
Christmases
and I really hope no white person ever has cause
to write about me
because they never understand
Black love is Black wealth and they’ll
probably talk about my hard childhood
and never understand that
all the while I was quite happy
posted by chavenet at 12:38 AM on December 10, 2024 [16 favorites]

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My ex was a colleague of hers, so I met her a few times. She was kind, creative, funny, and whip-smart.
posted by idb at 3:10 AM on December 10, 2024 [3 favorites]

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posted by hydropsyche at 4:02 AM on December 10, 2024

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posted by GenjiandProust at 4:40 AM on December 10, 2024

I was lucky enough to see her speak at a small college event, and speak to her briefly afterwards. She left a deep impression - intelligent and observant, and very kind. I'm glad she had a long life, and still wish she could've been with us longer.
posted by EvaDestruction at 5:09 AM on December 10, 2024 [2 favorites]

I enjoyed watching her interact with James Baldwin on YouTube. You could sense her resolve and humor. RIP
posted by DJZouke at 5:22 AM on December 10, 2024 [3 favorites]

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posted by humbug at 5:57 AM on December 10, 2024

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posted by robotmachine at 6:09 AM on December 10, 2024

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posted by Lyme Drop at 8:21 AM on December 10, 2024

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posted by Saxon Kane at 9:16 AM on December 10, 2024

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posted by gwint at 9:39 AM on December 10, 2024

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posted by kitten kaboodle at 11:22 AM on December 10, 2024

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posted by mxjudyliza at 11:35 AM on December 10, 2024

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posted by pianoblack at 12:45 PM on December 10, 2024

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Her poems were so meaningful to me.

If you have access to HBO Max, I highly, highly recommend Going to Mars: The Nikki Giovanni Project.
posted by TwoStride at 1:21 PM on December 10, 2024 [1 favorite]

Another giant gone.

I’ve been thinking about SNCC and SDS a good bit lately
posted by aiq at 4:06 PM on December 10, 2024 [1 favorite]

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posted by potrzebie at 11:01 AM on December 11, 2024

Thanks for posting. She read at my college, may years ago. She was so fulloflife and wisdom and amazing words. I miss her already.
posted by theora55 at 12:25 PM on December 11, 2024 [1 favorite]