June Jordan once said something which is just wonderful. I'm paraphrasing her-that her function as a poet was to make revolution irresistible. Well o.k. that is the function of us all, as creative artists, to make the truth, as we see it irresistible.

Caring for myself is not self-indulgence, it is self-preservation, and that is an act of political warfare.

what you hear in my voice is fury, not suffering. Anger, not moral authority

In our work and in our living, we must recognize that difference is a reason for celebration and growth, rather than a reason for destruction.

I stand here as a black lesbian feminist, having been invited to comment within the only panel at this conference where the input of black feminists and lesbians is represented. What this says about the vision of this conference is sad, in a country where racism, sexism and homophobia are inseparable. . . .

There's always someone asking you to underline one piece of yourself - whether it's Black, woman, mother, dyke, teacher, etc. - because that's the piece that they need to key in to. They want to dismiss everything else.

Poetry is not a luxury.