Voices inOur Ears Edition 1:
BY LAVENDER OMAN
WHY THESE PEOPLE
Each of these people is amazing in their own right, but when you look at their impacts on the world and the change they have made it is even more impressive.
Angela Davis, James Baldwin, bell hooks, and Audre Lorde have some great insights into our world during their time and now. Their books, poems, speeches, and research are a gateway to understanding. Reminder: they are people, no one is perfect and you don't have to agree to learn.
WHAT THEY HAVE SAID
“If they come for me in the morning, they will come for you in the night.”
― Angela Davis
“I can't believe what you say, because I see what you do.”
― James Baldwin
“Being oppressed means the absence of choices”
― bell hooks
“Your silence will not protect you.”
― Audre Lorde
Born January 26, 1944, in Birmingham, Alabama (USA). She is an American Marxist and feminist political activist, philosopher, academic, and author. She was once on the FBI Most Wanted and put on trial but was exonerated. She came out in 1977 as a Lesbian, her life partner is Gina Dent.
A N G E L A D A V I S
She was a big player in the Black Panther Party, even though she was never an official member. She has been associated with many groups including the Solada Brothers, Che-Lumumba Club, and many educational institutions. She believes in intersectional liberation and that liberation involved all of us.
Born August 2, 1924, in Harlem, New York City, New York (USA), and died December 1, 1987, in Saint-Paul-de-Vence (France). He was a prolific author, writing essays, novels, plays, and poems. He was a queer, Black, nontraditional Christian man who did not quantify these experiences. His art was heavily influenced by his identity.
J A M E S B A L D W I N
He did not pursue higher education, instead, he would travel and write. From Grenichvillage to several places in Europe, returning to the US to become a part of the Social Changing happening in the 50s and 60s. He spoke to those who did not understand (white, straight America) but also would not let himself be tokenized by these people.
Born September 25, 1952, in Hopkinsville, Kentucky (USA), and died December 15, 2021, in Berea, Kentucky. She was an author, theorist, educator, and social critic. Her writings on feminism, race, queerness, and class are insightful and widely regarded as some of the most important writings on the subject.
B E L L H O O K S
Her name is 'bell hooks' after her grandmother. hooks spelled her name in lowercase so people focus on her work rather than her name. She is college educated and became a professor at several prestigious schools. Her last position was at Berea College, where the bell hooks institute was founded in 2014. She created a support group for Black women called "Sisters of the Yam" b e l l h o o k s
Born February 18, 1934, in Harlem, New York City, New York, (USA), and died November 17, 1992, in St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands. She was a poet, writer, and researcher known for covering lesbian feminism and racial issues. She was highly educated and would work at colleges as a poet and professor both in the US and Germany
A U D R E L O R D E
she wrote about her life experiences and all the issues she saw in the world. She would battle with cancer on and off for years. She was once married to a white, gay man and had two children. They would divorce and she would go on to be strictly in relationships with women. Lorde would also cofound Kitchen Table Literary Arts, a literary magazine to promote Black women writers.
