Tears to Triumph:. Dawn Marie Daniels
we resist it. Nobody relishes change like a wet baby, and even the wet baby cries. Some changes are good, and some are challenging, but all changes force us out of a comfort zone, sometimes gently, sometimes abruptly. All change requires a paradigm shift, the act of twirling the kaleidoscope to watch new patterns emerge, then twirling again to find additional perspective. Sometimes we blink through our tears to discern the patterns. Sometimes our tears propel us forward.
These tears are part of the resilience for which African American women are known. Our tears are twice referenced in “Lift Every Voice and Sing,” the Negro National Anthem. The second stanza, “We have come over a way that with tears has been watered, we have come, treading our path through the blood of the slaughtered,” references the distance we have come to this place, and the pain in our path associated with the distance. One can only imagine that these words, written in the waning days of the nineteenth century, referenced the changes that African American people had experienced since 1865, when the Civil War ended, full citizenship was established, and the right to vote was established by federal law, and then compromised by Jim Crow. Yet the people did not stop struggling, fighting, challenging the status quo, or even crying. I think of Ida B. Wells and the anti-lynching crusade. Paula Giddings has written movingly of the multidimensional Ida B. Wells, of the challenges she faced and the tears she may have cried. Yet there is much triumph in the agitation she embraced, a triumph that has enriched people of African descent for many generations.
In the third stanza of the Negro National Anthem, tears are again referenced. “God of our weary years, God of our silent tears, Thou who has brought us thus far on the way; Thou who has by Thy might, led us into the light, keep us forever in the path we pray.” When Reverend Joseph Lowery opened his inaugural benediction with these words, he brought the full weight of the African American struggle for freedom and equality to the historic moment of the Barack Obama presidential inauguration. In the context of Tears to Triumph, the Negro National Anthem reminds us of our weary years, but also of our righteous path, all watered by the “silent tears” of struggle. African American people have certainly moved from tears to some triumph with the leadership of President Obama, though not triumphant enough to rest on our laurels, as it will take more than the election of one man to eliminate the reality of social and economic injustice.
Gandhi challenged all of us to be the change we wish to see in the world. It is easier, often, to speak of social change than to do the hard work of personal change. The process is not dichotomous, in which we are forced to choose one kind of change over the other. Instead, it is, in the words of Dr. Marilyn Sanders Mobley, Case Western Reserve University Vice President (and former Bennett College for Women Provost), “both-and.” The two are connected, though, when we understand that the women of the civil rights movement were not only social change agents, but also women, human beings, who had to struggle in their personal lives even as they struggled for justice. We can gain inspiration from them for their tenacity and fealty to a movement and, if we extrapolate, we can gain inspiration from the struggles we know they must have experienced as they dealt with the challenges of daily life.
Dr. Maya Angelou writes, “We delight in the beauty of the butterfly, but rarely admit the changes it has gone through to achieve that beauty.” Similarly, we are often riveted by tears, but must be reminded of the triumph that some tears have watered. When Bennett Belles shed joyful tears as they cross the graduation stage, we see the triumph of tears. We see the triumph, too, in this inspirational book that uses real women’s stories to help us all move from tears to triumph in our lives.
Dr. Julianne Malveaux is the fifteenth President of Bennett College for Women. Recognized for her progressive and insightful observations, she is also an economist, author, and commentator, and has been described by Dr. Cornel West as “the most iconoclastic public intellectual in the country.” Dr. Malveaux’s contributions to the public dialogue on issues such as race, culture, gender, and their economic impacts are shaping public opinion in twenty-first century America.
Acknowledgments
Laurie Parkin, we thank you for believing in us and the Souls of My Sisters imprint. Steven and Walter Zacharius, your support and guidance is just amazing. We have a talented, young, and brilliant staff without which we could not have made this possible: Kim Alvarez, Zerena Little, and Tanisha Wade. Thank you, Jessica McLean Ricketts, for your advice and kindness. Thank you to Rakia Clark, John Scognamiglio, Selena James, Karen Auerbach, Kate Duffy, David Lappin, Lesleigh Irish-Underwood, John Maseillo, Valeece Broadway Smith, Adeola P. Saul, Mercedes Fernandez, Neven Gravett, and Daly Hernandez. Thanks to our attorney, Kojo Bentil, Esq., Lex Larose, CPA, John Millwood, and the incredible research support from Brian A. Cravanas and Frankia Granberry.
The women of Tears to Triumph, we appreciate you giving your heart and soul to help us develop the ideas and thoughts within these pages.
Special thanks from Candace Sandy
To my parents, Patricia and Carlton Samuel, who love with grace and have instilled in me the need to make a difference. To my brothers, Sherwin Sandy and Sheldon Samuel; my nieces, Crystal and Taylor; and nephew, Ricardo, who has always been a constant source of love. To my aunts for their undying love, belief, guidance, and support. To Aunt Geraldine (Amu), Helen, Jennifer, Hemetta, Joanie, Pat, and Joan Braithwaite. To my uncles, who are absolutely phenomenal: Uncle Vernell (Vush) and Trevor Hamlett. To Uncle Wendell Hamlett, who never stopped believing in us. To my cousins, whose love and support sustained me: Jackie, Ann, Paula, Torrie, Jodelle, Donica, Danica, and Natalie. To all of the boys I treasure: Kealon, Terrence, Mark, Trevon, Brent, Franklin, Elijah, Langston. To the Fraley family, my aunt and Uncle Frank, Lisa Fraley, Ollie Gables, and Grandmother Fraley. To my godmother, Cyrilla Laborde, and my extended family: Gary and Amy Krakow; Saundra Parks; and my godchildren, Mark, Martin, Chanel, Naomi, Eliana, Alyssa, Gabriel, and Johnathan. My sisters since I was nine years old, Cristina Colon and Maggie Goring, and their spouses, Jose Gerrero and James Goring. To Al and Tiffany Ragin, who are simply irreplaceable.
To Congressman Gregory W. Meeks, his wife, Simone Marie Meeks, the Washington, and the New York staff who have been encouraging and understanding during the development of the book. Special thanks to Dana, Tracie, Teresa Frank, Steve Looney, Dr. Anita Jackson, Carl E. Simmons, Nadia Suliaman, the Donna Karan Family, and Vera Gaskin.
Special thanks from Dawn Marie Daniels
First and foremost, I truly want to thank my Lord and savior Jesus Christ from whence my strength, love, knowledge, and compassion comes from. God motivates me every day and for that I am grateful.
To my sons, Mark and Martin, you are my joy and every day being your mom is a blessing. Your love and support, questions and answers, laughter and tears have been the best lessons I have learned in life. You are truly special sons.
I give sincere love and undying gratitude to my best friend and sister, Candace Sandy. Your unconditional love and support have sustained me for the last twenty-plus years of my life—you are truly my sister. Your love and compassion inspire me to be the best person I can be every day.
To some of my best friends—Antoinette Callistro, Tiffany Cordy, Maria Davis, Dana Gibbs, Joella Irving, Christine Saunders, and Seanette Vaughan—thank you for being my everyday sounding boards, cheering squad, and sisters. I appreciate your sisterly advice and love.
Mom, the love you have shown me and the lessons you taught me remain with me forever. I love you and pray for you every day! Only a really special dad would support his daughter’s dream unquestioningly and unconditionally. Daddy, you are that special person and I cannot express in words how much I love you. Thank you.
Grandma, you are truly an angel. You are always there to support anything I do and I am grateful for the love and joy you bring to my life.
Special thanks from Dr. Jarralynne Agee
I give honor to God for realizing something special in me and giving me a hint of what your plans were for me through the angels and blessings that you have brought into my life. To my wonderful, amazing husband, Robert. I thank you for encouraging me to do this book and all the other projects. You always say, “Baby, you can do that.” I know I can because you said it and because I have