In today’s moment in Women’s History, we will highlight Nikki Giovanni, born on June 7, 1943, in Knoxville, Tennessee, and who passed on December 9, 2024, in Blacksburg, Virginia.
Born Yolande Cornelia Giovanni Jr., she got her nickname "Nikki" from her big sister as a kid. Growing up mostly in Cincinnati but spending summers with her grandparents in Knoxville, she headed to Fisk University in 1960. There she dove into civil rights, revived the campus SNCC chapter, and graduated with a history degree in 1967. Right after, she burst onto the scene with her first poetry collections; “Black Feeling Black Talk” and “Black Judgement” in 1968…raw, revolutionary voices tied to the Black Arts Movement and Black Power.
Her words captured love, family, race, politics, and joy, blending fierce calls for justice with tender personal moments. She wrote for kids too, like the award-winning “Rosa” about Rosa Parks, and taught for decades as a distinguished professor at Virginia Tech until retiring in 2022. Oprah named her one of her 25 Living Legends, and she earned countless honors for her fearless, accessible poetry.
Fun fact: her nickname started because her sister Gary Ann just began calling her "Nikki"…no big explanation, it simply stuck and became her forever name.
Remember…Education is freedom of mind and never should be colorblind.
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