“And there are so many silence to be broken.” This is what Audre Lorde concludes her article with in, The transformation of silence into Language and action. In this article she speaks of her experience of breast cancer and how, through the women around her and language (the absence of healing) carried her through this time. “Within the war we are all waging with the force of death, subtle and otherwise, conscious or not- I am not only a casualty. I am also a warrior.” In this article Lorde encourages the lack of silence and finding healing in speaking. She writes that if you do not talk about things and traumas that it will one day just ‘punch you in the mouth’. She mentions that a story does not have to be exactly relevant to another person’s, to have empathy and to be encouraged. Lorde says that if one says that one cannot tell one’s story or listen to another’s because ‘I am black’ or ‘I am a woman’, then “we rob ourselves of ourselves and each other.”

On the TED talk, Dismantling the Culture of Silence, Ijeoma Umebinyuo speaks about the importance of telling one’s story and breaking the silence. She speaks about silence being a tradition. This tradition includes keeping quiet if you are a woman, black, if the information shows weakness etc. She says:”. Glorifying survival but not the process of surviving.” She questions why is it considered shameful to speak about the process of trauma or a situation. By referring to history and many observations, it is evident that silence does not help anybody or any situation. When a person experiences trauma, not speaking about it creates baggage that will eventually become too much to carry. Umebinyuo says, “ silence is the act of civil disobedience.” When telling your story, you make a difference in society. This difference can be big or small. By telling your story you become the author of your story and thus gain control over it.

In The Baptism by Ijeoma Umebinyuo, the daughter’s traditional name is silenced. When the parent of the daughter speaks up about the meaningfulness of the name, she is silenced by the name Agnes. This poem acts as a universal one. Silencing and being silenced. Even though the parent was silenced, if he/she did not speak up, it would not of reach this poem and the millions of readers, impacting the way we think and perceive situations.