Nikki
Giovanni was born in 1943 in Knoxville, Tennessee in a close knit family. She was inspired by her grandmother, a
natural story teller, to explore the use of words. After growing up in a middle class Black suburb of Columbus, Ohio, she attended Fisk
University in Nashville, one of
the most prestigious of the historically Black colleges.
At Fisk not only did
she find her voice as a poet and writer, but she was immersed in the Civil Rights movement and the growing
militancy of emerging Black Power. She served as editor of the campus literary
magazine, participated in the Fisk
Writers Workshop, and helped re-build
the Fisk chapter of the Student
Non-Violent Coordinating Committee (SNCC). After graduation in turbulent 1968 Giovanni
went on to graduate studies at the University
of Pennsylvania and Columbia
University in New York.
Still an undergraduate
Giovanni published her first collection of poetry, Black Feeling, Black Talk in 1967 in response to the assignations of Martin Luther King, Jr., Malcolm X, Medgar Evers, and Robert Kennedy. A year later she followed up with Black Judgment, an exploration and
appreciation of Black militancy. The two
books catapulted her into the front ranks of a new generation of poets and one
who had appeal to wider audiences. A
third volume, Re: Creation published in 1970 cemented her place as a leading young black
voice. She was soon embarked on popular
readings, often incorporating black music.
Giovanni took a
teaching position at Rutgers University and
gave birth to her son Thomas. She worked to help other Black writers find
outlets through NikTom,
Ltd.,
a publishing cooperative which published Gwendolyn
Brooks, Margaret Walker, Carolyn Rodgers, and Mari Evans.
As Giovnni matured as a
poet and woman her interests broadened.
She continued to write in clear, accessible language about her life and
experiences, but later work was not as explicitly political as her early
efforts.
She also began writing
for children and young people beginning with Spin a Soft Black Song in 1971 and continuing through her Caldecott Medal winning Rosa in
2005.
Giovanni was teaching
at Virginia Tech in 2007 when the
tragic shooting occurred there. She
composed a memorial chant that was recited at the campus memorial service the
next day.
She has written dozens
of books, including two compilations, and non-fiction work. Giovanni is among the most honored of
contemporary poets having received the NAACP
Image Award, the Langston Hughes
Award for Distinguished Contributions to Arts and Letters, the Rosa Parks Women of Courage Award, and
over twenty honorary degrees from colleges and universities around the country.
Balances
in life
one is always
balancing
like we juggle our mothers
against our fathers
or one teacher
against another
(only to balance our grade average)
3 grains of salt
to one ounce truth
our sweet black essence
or the funky honkies down the street
and lately i’ve begun wondering
if you're trying to tell me something
we used to talk all night
and do things alone together
and i’ve begun
(as a reaction to a feeling)
to balance
the pleasure of loneliness
against the pain
of loving you
one is always
balancing
like we juggle our mothers
against our fathers
or one teacher
against another
(only to balance our grade average)
3 grains of salt
to one ounce truth
our sweet black essence
or the funky honkies down the street
and lately i’ve begun wondering
if you're trying to tell me something
we used to talk all night
and do things alone together
and i’ve begun
(as a reaction to a feeling)
to balance
the pleasure of loneliness
against the pain
of loving you
—Nikki Giovanni
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