Womanisms: Audre Lourde on Sisterhood

“We have to consciously study how to be tender with each other until it becomes a habit because what was native has been stolen from us, the love of Black women for each other. But we can practice being gentle with each other by being gentle with that piece of ourselves that is hardest to hold, by giving more to the brave bruised girlchild within each of us, by expecting a little less from her gargantuan efforts to excel. We can love her in the light as well as in the darkness, quiet her frenzy toward perfection and encourage her attentions toward fulfillment…As we arm ourselves with ourselves and each other, we can stand toe to toe inside the rigorous loving and begin to speak the impossible-or what has always seemed like the impossible-to one another. The first step toward genuine change. Eventually, if we speak the truth to each other, it will become unavoidable to ourselves”

Audre Lorde, “Eye to Eye: Black Women, Hatred, and Anger,”