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Nikki Giovanni
American poet
Quick Facts
- Byname of:
- Yolande Cornelia Giovanni, Jr.
- Died:
- December 9, 2024, Blacksburg, Virginia, U.S. (aged 81)
News •
Correction: Obit-Nikki Giovanni story
• Dec. 13, 2024, 12:41 PM ET (AP)
Nikki Giovanni (born June 7, 1943, Knoxville, Tennessee, U.S.—died December 9, 2024, Blacksburg, Virginia, U.S.) was an American poet whose writings range from calls for Black power to poems for children and intimate personal statements. She was a significant member of the Black Arts movement, a period of artistic and literary development among Black American artists in the 1960s and early ’70s. Nicknamed “Nikki” by her older sister, Yolande Giovanni, Jr., grew up in Knoxville, Tennessee, and Cincinnati, Ohio. In the latter city her parents, Jones (“Gus”) Giovanni and Yolande (née Watson) Giovanni, taught grade school. In 1960 she entered ...(100 of 469 words)