Maya Angelou was a poet, author, performer, and activist who became one of the most powerful voices in the 20th century. She endured a lot of pain, trauma, racism, and discrimination. She turned those struggles into strength and determination to use her writing to help others.

Maya Angelou, born Marguerite Annie Johnson in St. Louis Missouri on April 4, 1928. She had a very difficult childhood. Her parents divorce led to her and her brother moving in with their grandmother in Arkansas. There she faced discrimination and racism. At just 8 years old, her mother’s boyfriend raped her. As revenge, her uncles killed him. She was deeply traumatized from her experience that she stopped talking for nearly five years. During this time she learned her love for literature and poetry. She read works from Shakespeare, black poets, and classic authors and developed a love for language. Her silence gave her the ability to find her voice as a writer and storyteller and showing that speaking isn’t the only way to express yourself.

In high school maya became pregnant at 16. After giving birth she worked multiple jobs to support her and her son. She moved to San Francisco and was awarded a scholarship to study dance and acting at the California labor school. She also became the first black female cable car conductor. Short;y after she went to live abroad in Egypt and then Ghana, where she worked as an editor and a freelance writer. She also had a position at the university of Ghana. While there she joined a community of revolutionist returnees, exploring pan-africanism and became close with Malcom X, a black nationalist leader and activist. In 1964, she helped him set up the organization of Afro-American unity.

As well as writing poetry, she also wrote multiple memoirs and cookbooks. A fellow writer and friend James Baldwin convinced her to write about her life experiences. Her first autobiography, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, published in 1969 became an international success. It talks about her struggles with identity, racism, and abuse, while also shining a light on her resilience and strength. The title is a metaphor. While the bird is locked in a cage, it sings because it still has hope. The book gave a voice to painful experience that many people were afraid to share, especially African American women at the time. She also wrote powerful poetry, like phenomenal woman and still i rise. These show strength survival, an empowerment. Through her words, she was able to show that harmful situations didn’t have to warrant set backs, instead they can fuel inspiration and drive for everyone.

After publishing I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, she wrote the movie Georgia, Georgia making her the first African American woman to have a screenplay produced. She became a role model around the world because she proved that your past does not define your future. She wrote seven autobiographies, performed on stage, and made history for being the first to read a poem at an inauguration since 1961, for bill Clinton in 1993. She won a Grammy for best spoken word album for the audio version of On the Pulse of Morning. In 2022 she became the first African American women to appear on a U.S. quarter. She served on two presidential committees, was awarded the presidential medal of arts in 2000, the Lincoln medal in 2008, and received three Grammy awards as well as holding more than thirst honorary degrees.

I think this is a good question for this author because despite her past she never let it define her or hold her back.

While many people let hardships dictate their life, that doesn’t always have to be the case. Letting things hold us back can lead to missed opportunities and regrets on life. We can look at Maya Angelou as one example of someone who despite their past, used that bad to make it into something good.

Maya Angelou says “I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.” This is an important quote because we should always rember that no matter how someone treats you, it doesn’t mean you should treat them like that. She shows this after her step father was killed and she felt so traumatized and guilty that she stopped talking
She also says “To grow up is to stop putting blame on parents.” This is another good quote becuase despite it not being her fault foe the abuse, she could have put the blame on her parents for not protecting her but she didn’t. Showing great character.
She also states “You may shoot me with your words,
You may cut me with your eyes,
You may kill me with your hatefulness,
But still, like air, I’ll rise.” This is a powerful quote becuase no matter what someone says or does, we don’t have to take it to heart and can keep growing.