 |
| photo credit:Jane Bown |
Born Marguerite Annie, Johnson, in St Louis, Missouri, the daughter of Bailey Johnson, a doorman and naval dietician, and Vivian (nee Baxter), a nurse, professional gambler, bar owner and entertainer. Maya was the name given to her by her brother, also Bailey.
Maya’s early life was not so that rosy, according to her; she was raped by her mother's boyfriend at tender age of seven. ‘This traumatic incident, recorded in her autobiography, and the man's subsequent murder, for which she felt responsible, led her to stop speaking for five years’
At the age of 14 she ran away in search of her father, and lived rough in Los Angeles and Mexico for a time. She completed her high school education n San Francisco took lessons in dance and drama and, at the age of 17, gave birth to a son.
In her early 20s, she was married briefly to an aspiring musician, Anastasios (Tosh) Angelopulos, a former sailor, of Greek descent. Hence, professional name Maya Angelou, borrowing a form of her husband's surname. (Maya name given to her by her brother and Angelou borrowing from her husband’s name
Maya Angelou, was a dancer, singer, poet, author and activist. While in Ghana, she met Malcolm X, Angelou returned to the US in 1965 intending to help Malcolm X build his new Organisation of African-American Unity .That organisation collapsed with the assassination of Malcolm X that year, and Angelou then began to work more closely with Martin Luther King. When King was assassinated on 4 April,1968, on Angelou’s 40th birthday.
In 1969 she completed ‘I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings’. Narrating her changing awareness and struggle for self-fulfilment between the ages of three and 17, it portrayed vividly the characters of her glamorous mother, her proud and dignified grandmother, her beloved brother and her disabled Uncle Willie, as well as the troubled relationships between the races in the south during the depression.
She later wrote the followings: ‘Gather Together in My Name (1974), Singin' and Swingin' and Gettin' Merry Like Christmas (1976), The Heart of a Woman (1981), All God's Children Need Travelling Shoes (1986), A Song Flung Up to Heaven (2002) and Mom & Me & Mom (2013)’
Maya Angelou was a woman that believed in her sense of judgments and loved her friends’ ether they are black or white. She was a long-time Clnton friend and supporter According to her, “I made up my mind 15 years ago that if she ever ran for office I’d be on her wagon. My only difficulty with Senator Obama is that I believe in going out with who I went in with,”
However, she later supported Barack Obama after Clinton's campaign ended in 2008. Delighted when Obama was elected president, she declared: "We are growing up beyond the idiocies of racism and sexism." In a 2012 interview she rebuked those who expressed disappointment with his performance as president, insisting that he had "done a remarkable job".
" Maya Angelou, 86, according to her son Guy B Johnson "passed quietly in her home" sometime before 8am on Wednesday. She lived a life as a teacher, activist, artist and human being She was a warrior for equality, tolerance and peace. The family is appreciative of the time we had with her and we know that she is looking down upon us with love."
Adieu Maya.
No comments:
Post a Comment