The Strong Black Woman

The Strong Black
Woman Has Died

While struggling with the Reality of being a
Human instead of a myth, the Strong Black
Woman passed away.
Medical sources say she died of natural causes,
but those who knew her know she died from
being Silent when she should have been
Screaming, Smiling when she should
have been Raging, from being sick
and not wanting anyone to know
because Her Pain might
inconvenience them.

She Died from an overdose of other people
clinging to Her when she didn't even have
Energy for Herself.

She Died from Loving Men who didn't
Love themselves and could only
offer her a crippled reflection.

She Died from raising Children Alone.

She Died from the Lies her Grandmother
told her Mother and her Mother told
her about Life, Men & Racism.

She Died from being s*xually abused as
a child and having to take that Truth
everywhere she went every day of
Her Life, exchanging the
humiliation for guilt
and back again.

She Died from asphyxiation, coughing up
blood from Secrets she kept trying to
burn away instead of allowing
Herself the kind of nervous
breakdown she was
entitled to.

She Died from being Responsible, because
She was the last rung on the ladder and
there was no one under her She
could dump on.

The Strong Black
Woman Is Dead.

She Died from being a Mother at 15
and a Grandmother at 30 and an
Ancestor at 45.

She Died from being dragged down and
sat upon by un-evolved Women posing
as Sisters and Friends.

She Died from tolerating Mr. Pitiful,
JUST to have a Man around
the house.

She Died from sacrificing Herself for
Everybody and Everything when
what She really wanted to do
was be a Singer, a Dancer,
or some Magnificent
other.

She Died from Lies of omission because
She didn't want to bring the
Black Man down.

She Died from Tributes from her counterparts
who should have been matching Her Efforts
instead of showering her with dead words
and empty songs.

She Died from Myths that would not allow
Her to show Weakness without being
chastised by the Lazy and Hazy.

She Died from hiding her Real Feelings
until they became Hard and Bitter
enough to invade Her womb and
breasts like angry tumors.

She Died from always lifting something
from heavy boxes to refrigerators
All By Herself.

The Strong Black Woman Is Dead.


She Died from never being Enough of what
Men Wanted, or being Too much for the
Men She Wanted.

She Died from Being too Black and
Died again for not Being
Black enough.

She Died from being Misinformed about her
Mind, her Body & the extent of her
Royal capabilities.

She Died from knees pressed too close together
because Respect was never part of the
foreplay that was being shoved at Her.

She Died from Loneliness in Birthing rooms
and Aloneness in Abortion centers.

She Died in bathrooms with Her veins busting
open with Self-Hatred and Neglect.

And Sometimes when She Refused to die,
when She just Refused to give in, She
was Killed by the lethal images of
blonde hair, blue eyes, being
rejected by the OJ.'s, the
Quincy's, the Cuba's,
& the Kobe's.

Sometimes, She was stomped to Death by
Racism & s*xism, Executed by Hi-Tech
ignorance while She carried the
Family in her belly, the
Community on her
head, and the
Race on her
back!
May I add too, that the "Strong Black Woman" died from leaving Jesus out of her life and relationship. She died from taking the world's standards and not God's standard. Once the "strong black woman" come to realize that God is in control and no one can hold back what is for "her" then watch our families begin to come together. Our children will be better because we will bring them up in the fear of God. We will encourage our young men to be what God says and not what the "world" says. She died from allowing men to confirm what she should be and not what God says she is. I could go on, but I am accepting Questions and Comments.