Death =/= Determining Destiny

        The first point in the Black Panther Party’s 10-point Program is the belief that  “Black people will not be free until we are able to determine our destiny,” described by the title “We Want Freedom. We Want Power To Determine The Destiny Of Our Black Community.” 

The first poem we read representing the Black Arts movement was “For Black Poets Who Think of Suicide” by Etheridge Knight. Knight urges black poets not to commit suicide, as he designates suicide as a white activity--- an act of surrender which is made possible by having privilege. In contrast, “...Black Poets belong to Black People,” not death. In a philosophical sense, I do not believe there is any decision that gives one more agency, than the decision to decide to live. While killing oneself is a decision a person can make, no one can “determine their destiny” if they do not continue living. There is no way to have agency over one’s life if they are no longer living. 

Knight states that “...Black poets… Are / The Flutes of Black Lovers. Are / The organs of Black Sorrows. Are / The Trumpets of Black Warriors.” I interpret these lines as meaning that Black poets serve as instruments for which to express love, instruments for which to convey pain, instruments for which to inspire change and empower activism, through their artwork and poetry. As they are live and create, they serve the Black community and representing Black experiences, continuing to contribute on an individual level to their destiny and the destiny of their community. In a sense, they are bound to life by duty: duty to themselves, duty to the 10 point program, and duty to the cause. Knight’s poem represents the desire for freedom and the “power to determine the destiny of our black community” within the Black Arts Movement with the ultimate goal of persuading black poets to continue living– not giving up the struggle against racism, not giving up the ability to continue advocating for the black community. 

Etheridge Knight

(https://ekfreepeoplesbe.com/)


Comments

  1. Akeel DixonNovember 21, 2025 at 8:42 PM

    Hi Jemina! I love that you mentioned works that are not often brought up in our discussions for this class. It's interesting that black poems seem to have idea of expression of stories, emotions, and community. I feel like all these traits connect into ways of avoiding but also sometimes leading into depressive or suicidal thoughts. I feel like the work "For Black Poets Who Think of Suicide" reassures that these poems and their authors are attempting to tell stories, hard ones at that. This is important because it allows authors that were struggling to continue being strong as their ancestors were.

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  2. KruthiNovember 21, 2025 at 9:25 PM

    Hi Jemina! I really appreciated this deep dive into a poem we unfortunately didn't get to discuss much in class. It was super interesting to hear your views on how Black people best empower themselves through art and through the act of living and determining their own destinies. Throughout the Black Arts Movement, there is an overarching theme of power and standing up for what is right, and you've shown what artists of the time thought was the most appropriate way of doing so: staying alive and continuing to make powerful art that inspires change. Great blog!

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  3. Max WangNovember 21, 2025 at 10:17 PM

    Jemina, I liked how you connected the Ten-Point Program with the broader patterns and goals of the Black Arts Movement, and how it can be applied to the majority of literature created at the time. It's interesting how you connect the abstract point on being able to determine destiny with the sheer force of staying alive and pushing through oppression -- I hadn't realized the true depth which this tenet went, and you did a great job at explaining what those connections are.

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  4. ItzaDecember 10, 2025 at 8:03 PM

    Jemina, I really like this post. You've come up with a really interesting and unique analogy that I've never really considered before. I agree with the point that having the autonomy to control your own death ends up being counterintuitive to having agency over your own life. There is so much strength that Knight asks from Black people by encouraging them to continue living in a world of so much pain and oppression. I really appreciate your ultimate point that choosing to continue to live is very powerful in itself, and its the only way to conform to the tenet to choose their own destiny. Awesome blog!

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