RIP CICELY TYSON

Cicely Tyson i s an American legend and trailblazer, who broke barriers for Black actresses and women everywhere. In an extraordinary career of over seven decades, Ms. Cicely Tyson paved the way for Black actors by refusing to take on roles that demeaned Black people. She urged other Black thespians to do the same, and often went without work. She was critical of films and television programs that casted Black characters as criminal, servile or immoral, and insisted that African-Americans, even if poor or underprivileged, should be portrayed with dignity. On Thursday, January 28, 2021, Ms. Cicely Tyson passed away. Just a few days before her passing, she released her memoir, "Just as I Am" . She was 96 years old. Today we honor her amazing legacy. May she rest in heavenly peace. " Just As I Am is my truth. It is me, plain and unvarnished, with the glitter and garland set aside. In these pages, I am indeed Cicely, the actress who has been blessed to grace the stage and screen for six decades. Yet I am also the church girl who once rarely spoke a word. I am the teenager who sought solace in the verses of the old hymn for which this book is named. I am a daughter and mother, a sister, and a friend. I am an observer of human nature and the dreamer of audacious dreams. I am a woman who has hurt as immeasurably as I have loved, a child of God divinely guided by His hand. And here in my ninth decade, I am a woman who, at long last, has something meaningful to say.” – Cicely Tyson