Gamba Adisa
When you were born,
They did not know your path
Or what you would shout from podiums
Or write in hard books
On love
And war
And civil rights.
They just held you.
And we did not understand then
When you uttered your cry
Your fight for Life
And Colour
And Sex
We just listened
And you held us
In your inked hands
And taught us slowly
Around your Kitchen Table
By NLMcD
Footnote:
Late in life, Audre Lorde was
given the African name Gamba Adisa,
meaning "Warrior: She Who Makes Her Meaning Clear". It is a name that
applies to her whole life. Her struggle against oppression on many fronts was
expressed with a force and clarity that made her a respected voice for women,
African Americans, and the Gay and Lesbian community.
In 1968, she accepted a
teaching position at Tougaloo College in Jackson, Mississippi where the
violence that greeted the civil rights movement was close at hand every night.
This period cemented the bond between her artistic talents and her dedication
to the struggle against injustice.
Lorde went on to provide
avenues of expression to future generations of writers by co-foundingthe Kitchen Table: Women of Color Press.