Audre Lorde Is Quotations

Life is very short and what we have to do must be done in the now.

For women, then, poetry is not a luxury. It is a vital necessity of our existence.

The absence of any consideration of lesbian consciousness or the consciousness of third world women leaves a serious gap within this conference. . . .

I stand here as a black lesbian feminist, having been invited to comment within the only panel at this conference where the input of black feminists and lesbians is represented. What this says about the vision of this conference is sad, in a country where racism, sexism and homophobia are inseparable. . . .

I agreed to take part in a New York University Institute for Humanities conference a year ago. . . .

There are many kinds of open. . . Love is a word, another kind of open. . . Take my word for jewel in your open light.

Poetry is not a luxury.