By Audre Lorde
Moon marked and touched by sun
my magic is unwritten
but when the sea turns back
it will leave my shape behind.
I seek no favor
untouched by blood
unrelenting as the curse of love
permanent as my errors
or my pride
I do not mix
love with pity
nor hate with scorn
and if you would know me
look into the entrails of Uranus
where the restless oceans pound.
I do not dwell
within my birth nor my divinities
who am ageless and half-grown
and still seeking
my sisters
witches in Dahomey
wear me inside their coiled cloths
as our mother did
mourning.
I have been woman
for a long time
beware my smile
I am treacherous with old magic
and the noon’s new fury
with all your wide futures
promised
I am
woman
and not white.
I chose this poem because it transports a powerful message about the lives of black women whose voices have often been neglected. Audre Lorde invites the reader to discover the realities of black women without accusing specific people for the condition of the black diaspora. I think it is important to diversify our reading experience and this is what I am exactly doing during this period when I have more time than usual to think about the authors and the texts that I want to get to know. Audre Lorde was a highly inspirational character and writer and you should check out her other writings and poems too!