The special recognition of Black history was begun by Dr. Carter G. Woodson (1875 – 1950), a Harvard-trained historian whose parents had been enslaved. Dr. Woodson believed black people had a culture and tradition that scholars should investigate and artists should use as inspiration. He challenged all Americans to understand their country by seeing beyond American culture as simply transplanted British culture.
When Carter G. Woodson established Negro History week in February, 1926 (which became Black History Month in 1976), he wanted to provide a yearly theme to help focus the public’s attention. The 2024 theme is African Americans and the Arts, including the fields of visual and performing arts, literature, fashion, folklore, language, film, music, architecture, and culinary arts.
Ms. Phyllis A. Kidd was a local author and poet from Bossier City. She put her heart and soul into every word she wrote and encouraged other writers, including children, visiting schools and volunteering for Artbreak, a hands-on family festival celebrating the importance of curriculum-based arts programs. She began writing around 1994. Her inspiration to write arrived through her faith in God and heart complications that frightened her into thinking each heartbeat could be her last. She decided it was time to share some things with her two children, and she started with simply writing them letters.
Additional hardships also prompted her to write, including the loss of her job. She recognized that God gave her the desire to write about things she knew about and lived on a daily basis. She found encouragement, kindred spirits and an avenue for publication and poetry readings with the local Trapped Truth Poetry Society. Ms. Kidd’s first book of poems is suitably titled “Straight from the Heart of Phyllis Kidd” located at the History Center. Her later book, “I Still Have My Joy,” was initially typed and proofread by her friend Adrian Lee, who worked at Bossier Central Library. Sadly, Phyllis Kidd passed away in 2001 when she was only 50 years old. Her poem, “Then I Came to Myself” was read at her funeral by her sister Cynthia Kidd:
…I was almost overcome, I was almost vexed beyond belief, I was perplexed, I of all people had become fearful, I was about to give up, to succumb to the enemy, he had me going for a while, “Then I Came to Myself”
...No! No! Self-help Book delivered me, no transcendental meditation did this; it was God all the way!”
I literally took Him at His word, “Then I Came to Myself” (excerpt)
Phyllis Kidd wrote her poem I HAVE AN ATTITUDE (yes, she meant for it to be in all caps) in honor of Black History month:
I HAVE AN ATTITUDE
We are Magnificent, Resourceful, Brilliant, Suave, Arrogant, Proud and Angry, Yes!
And I Wonder Why?
We have Prodigies. We are Skilled. We are Wise. We can Excel, even after being Prohibited. And Angry, Yes!
And I Wonder Why?
We are Perceptive, Keen, Abiding, Submissive, Enduring Servitude, being of Grandeur Descent, and Angry, Yes!
And I Wonder Why?
The Long Hidden Secret is Out. We Are, We Were, We Will Again. And Angry, No!
Because I Know Why.
Her piece titled Jamil Guess What! is in reference to another poem of hers, What Do You Want to Be When You Grow Up? based on the time her then seven-year-old granddaughter asked her that very question.
Jamil Guess What! (excerpt)
…Who would have ever thought that I would be writing and reading poetry? One never knows what a day may bring. We don’t know what God has in store for us. We don’t know what our lives will evolve into. When you asked me the question, “What do you want to be when I grow up?”, I had no earthly idea that I was still growing. It’s amazing, for life is truly a “journey and not a destination.” I thought I had become all that I was supposed to be.
…So, Jamil, guess what, I’m an Author, or at least somewhat!
Visit the History Center to look at Phyllis Kidd’s poetry books in our collection or view her oral history transcript. (You can also access that in our online collections database.) To be able to present the well-rounded view of American History that Carter G. Woodson promoted, the Bossier Parish Libraries History Center is always looking to add more photographs or documents of African-American life in Bossier Parish. We can always make copies and you keep the originals. We are currently focused especially on obtaining photographs and church histories from as many African-American religious congregations in Bossier Parish as possible.
The Bossier Parish Libraries History Center is located at 2206 Beckett St., Bossier City, LA. We are open M-Th 9-8, Fri 9-6, and Sat 9-5. Our phone number is (318) 746-7717 and our email is history-center@bossierlibrary.org
For other fun facts, photos, and videos, be sure to follow us @BPLHistoryCenter on FB, @bplhistorycenter on TikTok,
