"Beautiful," "brilliant," "grace" and "elegance" are just a few of the words used by those who paid tribute Friday to the late Sidney Poitier, one of the greatest actors of the past century.
Poitier, who died Thursday at the age of 94, blazed trails as a Black actor who rose to fame during a time when there were few starring roles offered to African Americans. He set a standard for those who came after him.
"No words can describe how your work radically shifted my life," Academy Award-winning actress Viola Davis posted on her verified Instagram account. "The dignity, normalcy, strength, excellence and sheer electricity you brought to your roles showed us that we, as Black folks, mattered!!!"
Hollywood mogul Tyler Perry noted on Facebook that "Around this time last year Cicely Tyson was releasing her book and promoting it. I had no idea she would pass away shortly thereafter."
"Now, to wake up this morning to a call that Sidney Poitier has passed away... all I can tell you is that my heart broke in another place," Perry wrote. "The grace and class that this man has shown throughout his entire life, the example he set for me, not only as a black man but as a human being will never be forgotten."
Said Whoopi Goldberg on Twitter, "He showed us how to reach for the stars."
If you wanted the sky i would write across the sky in letters that would soar a thousand feet high..
— Whoopi Goldberg (@WhoopiGoldberg) January 7, 2022
To Sir… with Love
Sir Sidney Poitier R.I.P.
He showed us how to reach for the stars
Activist Bernice King, daughter of civil rights icon Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., paid homage to Poitier's work fighting for equality by tweeting a photo of the actor she labelled as being from the "Poor People's Campaign, Resurrection City, Washington, D.C., May 1968."
"Powerful beyond the stage and screen," she tweeted.
Sidney Poitier
— Be A King (@BerniceKing) January 7, 2022
Poor People's Campaign, Resurrection City, Washington, D.C., May 1968
Powerful beyond the stage and screen. pic.twitter.com/hEKRxGvoM2
Others in the activism community also took to social media to pay homage.
"This beautiful, brilliant, talented Black man," tweeted Sherrilyn Ifill, president and director-counsel for the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, along with a photo of Poitier. "Rest in Peace and Power."
This beautiful, brilliant, talented Black man. Rest in Peace and Power #SidneyPoitier pic.twitter.com/RD3zhNOeX7
— Sherrilyn Ifill (@Sifill_LDF) January 7, 2022
.
Latest Stories
-
Quincy Jones: His brilliance explained in 10 songs
3 hours -
Nigeria and Britain hail partnership to boost economic ties, security
4 hours -
Chad threatens to withdraw from multinational security force
4 hours -
Cocoa farmers hoard beans in anticipation of price hike, reports Reuters
4 hours -
Boat capsizes off Comoros islands, 25 killed, UN agency says
4 hours -
How are votes counted in the US election?
4 hours -
Mozambique presidential runner-up escapes alleged assassination attempt
5 hours -
Nigerian children who collapsed in court released
5 hours -
Integrity lacking in Ghana’s business history, says Dr David Ofosu-Dorte
5 hours -
Quincy Jones: From ‘street rat’ to music mastermind
5 hours -
Bawumia outlines plans to develop three major railway lines alongside road projects
5 hours -
I want you to be millionaires through my responsible mining policies – Bawumia assures miners
6 hours -
‘Constitution reigns supreme in Ghana’- Declares Attorney General
6 hours -
‘Efua Ghartey’s GBA presidency has a divine touch’, says Attorney General Dame
6 hours -
Esports Ghana: Stakeholders gear up for pivotal meeting in Accra
6 hours