Sometimes we are blessed with being able to choose the time, and the arena, and the manner of our revolution, but more usually we must do battle where we are standing.
Interpretation
We often have to fight for change in challenging circumstances rather than ideal ones.
Audre Lorde highlights the reality that while we may sometimes have the privilege to choose our battles and the conditions in which we fight for change, more often than not, we must confront struggles within the constraints of our current situations. This reflection emphasizes resilience and adaptability in the face of adversity.
In practice
This quote would be perfect for a motivational speech addressing social justice activists.
The fact that we are here and that I speak these words is an attempt to break that silence and bridge some of those differences between us, for it is not difference which immobilizes us, but silence. And there are so many silences to be broken.
There is no thing as a single-issue struggle because we do not live single-issue lives.
There are no new ideas. There are only new ways of making them felt.
I am not free while any woman is unfree, even when her shackles are very different from my own.
I am deliberate and afraid of nothing.
There's always someone asking you to underline one piece of yourself - whether it's Black, woman, mother, dyke, teacher, etc. - because that's the piece that they need to key in to. They want to dismiss everything else.
We have defeated Jim Crow, but now we have to deal with his son, James Crow Jr., esquire.
The price of doing the same old thing is far higher than the price of change.
I thought yesterday was the first day of the rest of my life but it turns out today is.
No one is alone, and each change here brings about another change there.
There is no development strategy more beneficial to society as a whole - women and men alike - than the one which involves women as central players.
Any ritual is an opportunity for transformation. To do a ritual, you must be willing to be transformed in some way. The inner willingness is what makes the ritual come alive and have power. If you aren't willing to be changed by the ritual, don't do it.
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