Cicely is the medieval English form of Cecilia — from the Latin caecus (blind). **Cicely Tyson (1924-2021)** — **American actress whose 70+ year career was a sustained refusal to play roles she considered demeaning to Black women — she once turned down work for 8 consecutive years rather than accept a stereotype**. **Best Actress Oscar nomination for *Sounder* (1972) at 48**; **honorary Academy Award (2018); Presidential Medal of Freedom (2016); Tony Award (2013) at 88 for *The Trip to Bountiful***. **Founded the Dance Theatre of Harlem (1968) with her husband Miles Davis**. **Cicely Saunders (1918-2005)** — British nurse who founded the modern hospice movement; St Christopher's Hospice, London (1967).
Subject of Tyson's memoir *Just as I Am* (2021), released two days before her death at 96.
Cicely reduces to four — the number of refusal to be diminished.