Answer: no matter what is done to the speaker and to her people, her power is such that "still, like dust, I'll rise." This simile suggests that the speaker is lighter than air, floating upward, above the "lies" of her oppressors. The poem is replete with similes. The speaker compares herself to "moons" and "suns" and describes herself as having "the certainty of tides," all images which suggest constancy and a capacity to stay the course and outlast naysayers. The speaker also uses figurative language to suggest that she behaves as if she is wealthier than she is, knowing that there is an internal, natural wealth inside her. She behaves "like I've got gold mines" and "like I've got oil wells," indicating that the speaker carries herself with the confidence of someone who has valuable natural resources, and knows it.
