Every woman I have ever known has made a lasting impression on my soul. Audre Lorde More Quotes by Audre Lorde More Quotes From Audre Lorde Part of the lesbian consciousness is an absolute recognition of the erotic within our lives and, taking that a step further, dealing with the erotic not only in sexual terms. Audre Lorde erotic recognition steps Black women are programmed to define ourselves within this male attention and to compete with each other for it rather than to recognize and move upon our common interests. Audre Lorde competition racism moving When we define ourselves, when I define myself, the place in which I am like you and the place in which I am not like you, I'm not excluding you from the joining - I'm broadening the joining. Audre Lorde joining like-you We are powerful because we have survived Audre Lorde survived powerful It's possible to take that as a personal metaphor and then multiply it to a people, a race, a sex, a time. If we can keep this thing going long enough, if we can survive and teach what we know, we'll make it. Audre Lorde race long sex Perhaps...I am the face of one of your fears. Because I am a woman, because I am Black, because I am a lesbian, because I am myself--a Black woman warrior poet doing my work--come to ask you, are you doing yours? Audre Lorde warrior black faces Guilt and defensiveness are bricks in a wall against which we all flounder; they serve none of our futures. Audre Lorde bricks wall guilt Advocating the mere tolerance of difference between women is the grossest reformism. it is a total denial of the creative function of difference in our lives. Difference must be not merely toleration, but seen as a fund of necessary polarities between which our creativity can spark like a dialectic. Only then does the necessity for interdependency become unthreatening. Only within the interdependency of different strengths, acknowledged and equal, can the power to seek new ways of being in the world generate, as well as the courage and sustenance to act where there are no charters Audre Lorde creativity differences creative The transformation of silence into language and action is an act of self-revelation . Audre Lorde silence self action There is no Hierarchy of Oppressions Audre Lorde hierarchy oppression Self-care is not about self-indulgence , it is about self-preservati on. Audre Lorde indulgence care self Poetry is the way we help give name to the nameless so it can be thought. Audre Lorde names giving way The love expressed between women is particular and powerful because we have had to love in order to live; love has been our survival. Audre Lorde survival powerful order We are all more blind to what we have than to what we have not. Audre Lorde dissatisfaction gratitude blind Even the smallest victory is never to be taken for granted. Each victory must be applauded. Audre Lorde gratitude victory taken Poetry is the way we help give name to the nameless so it can be thought. The farthest horizons of our hopes and fears are cobbled by our poems, carved from the rock experiences of our daily lives. Audre Lorde rocks names giving We must recognize and nurture the creative parts of each other without always understanding what will be created. Audre Lorde nurture understanding creative I am my best work - a series of road maps, reports, recipes, doodles, and prayers from the front lines. Audre Lorde maps prayer inspirational I remember how being young and black and gay and lonely felt. A lot of it was fine, feeling I had the truth and the light and the key, but a lot of it was purely hell. Audre Lorde gay lonely keys Only by learning to live in harmony with your contradictions can you keep it all afloat. Audre Lorde harmony contradiction inspiring
