Lucille Clifton – why some people be mad at me sometimes

“they ask me to remember
but they want me to remember
their memories
and i keep on remembering
mine.”

– Lucille Clifton

---

Poet Lucille Clifton once said, ‘writing is a way of continuing to hope,’ adding, ‘perhaps for me it is a way of remembering I am not alone.’ This powerful poem of hers resonates through its brevity and sparing use of language, which she was otherwise known for. Clifton was a writer, poet, educator and mother of six children who wrote extensively about the African-American experience and family life, including her identity as a mother.