NEW YORK – Sidney Poitier’s daughter has posted a lengthy and emotional tribute to her father after the Hollywood veteran’s death last week at the age of 94.The trailblazing actor, humanitarian and diplomat was the first black man to win best actor at the Oscars. In an 800-word tribute posted on Instagram, Sydney Poitier praised her father’s “strength of character and moral fortitude”.
“But what I really want people to know is how GOOD he was,” she wrote. Her tribute follows those paid by giants of US life including former President Barack Obama, talk show host Oprah Winfrey and actress Viola Davis. There are no words for this. No real way to prepare for this. No prose beautiful enough, no speech eloquent enough to capture the essence of my dad. We know his accomplishments are many and that he quite literally changed the landscape for everyone who came after him. He blazed a trail through rough and hostile terrain so those coming behind him could have a bit more ease on the journey. So the people that claimed that this mountain was theirs and theirs alone would know that we belonged. That it was indeed our mountain too. That we were coming and that we were staying.
We know how graceful and wise he was. How powerful his strength of character and moral fortitude. But what I really want people to know is how GOOD he was.
I know people know he was good, but I don’t think they know the depth of his goodness. That it permeated every cell of his being. The sort of goodness that prevented him from killing even the tiniest of bugs. Not A One. I am a wizard at removing a spider with a shot glass and a piece of paper because of him.
He had a deep reverence for all life, and a true awareness of our interconnectedness. He knew on a cellular level that if he hurt anyone or anything he hurt everyone and everything. He treated anyone who crossed his path as his equal and offered them his full presence. He was GOOD.
My grief is because I lost my dad, but it is also because the world lost so much goodness. He was like a lighthouse, warm and bright. No matter the storms whipping around him, he stood unwavering shining in his light. Those of us who were flailing around in the dark waters could always orient towards him and swim for the shores.
Discussion about this post