Iconic!!!

First Name Tom, Last Name Foolery… And I’m Everybody’s Uncle!    

Especially this influential soul... Cicely Tyson.

Cicely Tyson, an award-winning icon of the stage & screen who broke barriers for Black actresses with surpassing dignity, died Thursday, her longtime manager Larry Thompson confirmed to UTF.

She was 96. A family statement did not reveal the cause of death. The actress chronicled her lengthy career in her first memoir, "Just As I Am," which was just released Tuesday.

Tyson embodied African American women who demanded attention -- & more than that, respect. She played former slaves, civil rights icons, sharecroppers, truthtellers, mothers & other complicated women -- bringing a sense of depth, nobility & grace to every character.

Tyson consciously embraced breaking boundaries. In her acceptance speech at her Hollywood Walk of Fame ceremony, she referenced the Langston Hughes poem "Mother to Son" to explain how she'd lived her life & career.

"All the time, I've been climbing on, reaching landings, turning corners, & sometimes going in the dark where there ain't been no light."

Climb on The Family Tree below & share your thoughts about My Niece Cicely Tyson's homegoing situation.

By: Anika Myers Palm

Image(s): Getty

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