I Think Children Have Talent And Insight,

As An African-american, As A Woman I Think That I've Been Sensitized To The Way In Which History Privileges The White Male And The Way In Which Certain Aspects Of History, The Things That We Are Taught In School, The Things That Are Handed Down Never, Never Entered The Picture Though They Might Have Been Very Important.

Under Adversity, Under Oppression, The Words Begin To Fail, The Easy Words Begin To Fail. In Order To Convey Things Accurately, The Human Being Is Almost Forced To Find The Most Precise Words Possible, Which Is A Precondition For Literature.

Listen How They Say Your Name. If They Can't Say That Right, There's No Way They're Going To Know How To Treat You Proper, Neither.

It's Unfortunate That Sometimes In Schools, There's This Need To Have Things Quantified And Graded.

The Poetry That Sustains Me Is When I Feel That, For A Minute, The Clouds Have Parted And I've Seen Ecstasy Or Something