The passing of the beloved Nikki Giovanni has stunned the Black community everywhere, and in response, people are sharing the best moments from the writer’s long and successful career.
In reaction to her death, fellow writer Kwame Alexander shared in a statement, “We will forever be grateful for the unconditional time she gave to us, to all her literary children across the writerly world.”
Giovanni died on Monday from complications of lung cancer, according to the New York Times.
Born on June 7, 1943, Giovanni authored several award-winning works, including, “The Sun Is So Quiet,” “Love Poems,” “Blues: For All the Changes,” and “Hip Hop Speaks to Children.”
Gaining prominence as one of the notable figures of the Black Arts Movement in the 1960s and 1970s, Giovanni was inspired by other historical events of the time, which also included the Civil Rights Movement.
Shortly after learning about her death, Black people took to social media to share what the talented poet meant to them and the Black community. As a result, several people shared some of the most notable moments from Giovanni’s legendary time as a writer, educator, and activist.
Some took the route of simply sharing one of Giovanni’s many excellent poems.
Others decided to share incredible moments that were recorded on video, including her entertaining discussion with fellow writer James Baldwin in 1971.
For those who may not be familiar with Giovanni or her incredible works, you’re in luck because in November 2023, a little over a year before her passing, the documentary, “Going to Mars: The Nikki Giovanni Project,” was released on Max.
Created by filmmakers Joe Brewster and Michèle Stephenson, the film details and documents the award-winning author’s life through the lens of the several historical events and periods she lived through including everything from the Civil Rights Movement to the Black Lives Matter movement.
In an interview with The Root, Stpehnson said, “How could we push our craft to match, and do justice to her work and the impact that it has? We wanted to explore how the filmmaking, storytelling part could really be a reflection in homage to her work.”
He continued, “That’s where we spend a lot of time working and reworking things in the storytelling process so we wouldn’t be this conventional piece because she’s anything but conventional. We wanted the work to reflect her spirit.”