Say Her Name Quotes

“How to Resist

march
curse
fume
cry
but save some of your salt
to cure the rage so
it lasts even longer

write a poem
write a check

take a social media break
take a long bath
put lotion on your body
then put your body in the street

don’t waste your words on frauds
be strategically silent
or find the spaces of denial
and shatter the silence
with your screams

close your ears to the lies
but listen to the cries
of the weak and the wounded
keep the truth deep inside
safe from the filthy fingers
that warp everything they touch

let it throb
ache
and break
over and over again but
don’t harden your heart
harden your resolve instead

most of all

feel something
feel something
feel something”
― Zetta Elliott, Say Her Name

“Men Made of Glass

men made of glass
beware my smile
with lips closed
I can cast a spell
that will reduce you to shards

I draw magic from a well
more ancient than you can fathom
I commune with unsettled spirits
listening to their lament

you spilled my sisters' blood
because they denied you
shame led to slaughter
indefensible panic

my sisters are black pearls
far beyond your valuation
you were never worthy
and now your time is up”
― Zetta Elliott, Say Her Name

“your smile is not owed to any man -- genuine compliments are free”
― Zetta Elliott, Say Her Name

“If you are silence about your pain they will kill you and say you enjoyed it.”
― Zetta Elliott, Say Her Name