Black Women Turned To Twitter To Give Ntozake Shange Her Roses — And It Was Beautiful
From Ava Duvernay to dream hampton, hundreds of Black women reminisced on how the acclaimed author, poet, and playwright changed their lives with her words.
Black women the world over took to social media to mourn and reminisce the life and impact of author, poet, and playwright Ntozake Shange.
The wordsmith who was “the blueprint for so many young Black female writers, poets and playwrights” passed away Saturday morning at an assisted living home in Bowie, Maryland, her family announced on social media. She was 70.
For many Black women, her acclaimed For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide/When the Rainbow is Enufwas a rite of passage — and they said as much on Twitter when news of Shange‘s death spread.
“So much of what I wanted to do with my writing and my performance was in ‘for colored girls who have considered suicide / when the rainbow is enuf’ and Sassafras, Cyprus & Indigo,” Poet Bassey Ikpi said in a beautiful thread about Shange’s writing. “It’s corny to say but she did teach us how to sing a Black girl’s song. She really did.”
So much of what I wanted to do with my writing and my performance was in "for colored girls who have considered suicide / when the rainbow is enuf' and Sassafras, Cyprus & Indigo. It's corny to say but she did teach us how to sing a Black girl's song. She really did.
“There are complicated Black women that people prefer posthumously. I don’t have Ntozake’s talent, at all. But I know what it is to be one of those women,” acclaimed writer Dream Hampton said. “And I saw God in Ntozake, and I loved her fiercely.”
There are complicated Black women that people prefer posthumously. I don't have Ntozake's talent, at all. But I know what it is to be one of those women. And I saw God in Ntozake, and I loved her fiercely.
“Ntozake started a lot with FOR COLORED GIRLS and broke many rules,” writer Terry McMillan said. “Hands across my heart. Saddened.”
Here are more tweets of remembrance:
I’m trying to find the words to honor the woman who gave me my words as she passes on to the other world. Thank you, Ntozake Shange, for sparking a fire within so many of us that continues to burn in vibrant fury! ❤️🙏🏽
She taught us to sing a black girl’s song .....to sing a song of our possibilities. So deeply thankful for her voice #Ntozakepic.twitter.com/PIWS80c2qf
I spent the first five years of my serious writing life trying to look/sound/be Ntozake. I found myself *through* her work. May God bless you always. pic.twitter.com/pgbNr81eLx
When I was a very little girl, my mother used to perform Ntozake Shange’s Lady in Green monologue. That’s when I first loved her words. Later, reading about Indigo’s tea parties with her dolls, I felt seen & testified to...
Every black woman should read "For Coloured Girls Who Have Considered Suicide When The Rainbow is Enuf" at least once in their life. And if you must watch it, watch the original version, not the Tyler Perry version. Ntozake Shange was peerless.
Oh Ntozake I learned so much from you. Your writing deeply affected my black womanhood, sexuality, and vulnerability as an actor. I’m deeply inspired to continue to write, to work, and reveal through characters. Your secrets- your poetry - lives on.
When I first found the words of Ntozake Shange, it was revelatory, it gave me a way forward and a better sense of myself. So thankful for the words that she gave us all. Rest well.
