Voices of Black PowHer

By Sabrina Sade Parker

Voices of Black PowHer was inspired by the realization that many Black women I’ve encountered throughout my life, from immediate family to friends and acquaintances, exhibited the characteristics of voicelessness. They either had experiences that left them feeling voiceless or were raised in an environment where they learned that their voi

• Language: English
• Publisher: Voices of Black PowHer
• Release date: Jul 15, 2021
• ISBN: 9781087803005

Book preview

Voices of Black PowHer was inspired by the realization that many Black women I’ve encountered throughout my life, from immediate family to friends and acquaintances, exhibited the characteristics of voicelessness. They either had experiences that left them feeling voiceless or were raised in an environment where they learned that their voices didn’t matter or were not appreciated. It was too few and far in between that I met a Black woman with the confidence and courage to speak her truth as tough as it may have been, maybe this was a reflection of my life as a Black woman or maybe it was the overarching, dominant reality. Whatever it was, it was affecting me. Society’s stigma of the angry Black woman has plagued Black women by unjustly summarizing and diminishing our identities into a box, and to be clear, NOT every Black woman is angry, BUT for the ones that are, have we ever took a moment to consider the root of that anger before casting judgments? Why are people less concerned with why we are angry, but are hellbent on labeling us when we are or appear to be, as if we have no right to be angry, as if our anger isn’t justified. I don’t believe anger is a state of mind that we should stay in, but I believe that we should also take time to understand why it may be that way or is assumed to be that way.

This book of poems is my ode to Black women who have felt or still feel voiceless, powerless and that their thoughts and feelings don’t matter. Voices of Black PowHer is a declaration that they do.

A Woman’s Purpose

Proceed with caution

She bleeds exhaustingly

She needs a man that breathes life into her body

Not a man who confines her soul

A spirit so bright, it's not meant to die

A woman like that is not petrified by life

She grabs it by the collar, embraces it, and kisses it on the lips

She is earth, wind, fire, and water

Water is flowing, life giving, filling, she is…

She is elemental

Elementary, where did it all begin

With a goddess, God's flesh, she gave birth to the universe

Mother Nature walks with firm breasts, soft lips, and curvy hips

She is first unknown,

A fetus (in the womb), a girl (in a room), a lady (in the streets), a woman (not a freak)

Feminine energy manifests through her beauty

Nature deems her to be soft and soothing

She is an inspiration, the light bulb of your creativity

She moves you to be moved, but can not be moved

Like a mountain, high, strong, and beautiful

She flows rivers, blows wind, sparks flames, and grounds trees

She is vital force, life force, the first life source

She lives through me, an extension of the Divine unity

Sun, moon, and star is man, woman, and child

The original Holy Trinity,

As above, so below

But catch your breath, no better yet catch yourself

Know thyself, knowledge of self, because knowledge is wealth

Find your truth, what is true of you may not be true of me

But you and I are One, you