Maya Angelou

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Maya Angelou once said, "If you don't like something, change it. If you can't change it, change your attitude," which is exactly what she did to her life. On April 4, 1928, Marguerite Johnson, more commonly known by her stage name Maya Angelou, was born into an African American Southern family suffering from the racial injustice in the United States (Contemporary Black Biography). Angelou did not let the nature of her past affect what her future would hold and overcame the many challenges she faced. Maya Angelou experienced hardships throughout her life but, despite these, she became an extremely well known author, poet, and entertainer. Her inspirational ways, perseverance, and resilience make Maya Angelou my hero.

Maya Angelou was born in St. Louis in 1928, a time of much racial discrimination despite the Civil War being long over. Growing up in the South as an African American girl was very difficult. Angelou's parents divorced when she was three years old. From there, she and her younger brother Bailey went to live with their grandmother in Stamps, Arkansas where they experienced and learned of the harsh realities of racial injustice (Contemporary Black Biography). At eight years old, Maya Angelou was visiting her mother in St. Louis where she was sexually molested by her mother's boyfriend. Angelou was ashamed and embarrassed by her rape and confided in her brother Bailey. When one of Angelou's uncles killed this man, Angelou fell into silence. She believed that her words were responsible for his death (Poets.org). Five years later, Angelou and her brother returned to live with their mother in San Francisco where Angelou received a scholarship to study dance and drama (Contemporary Black Biography). This is when she first discovered her passion for the arts. However, she dropped out of school to become the first African American cable car conductor. She later returned to high school and graduated.

During her senior year, Angelou became pregnant with a baby boy whom she named Guy. Angelou took her son and left home to make a living and career for herself. She worked small, odd, low-paying jobs to support her and her small family. Angelou faced many setbacks on her path. However, she never lost her talent or passion for words and music. In 1969, Maya Angelou published her first novel and autobiography entitled I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings. The novel highlighted the struggles and tragedies she faced in her life (Contemporary Black Biography). This book skyrocketed Angelou's career, which only took off from there. She published many more novels, poetry, and starred in, wrote, and produced many Hollywood productions. Angelou was awarded many prizes and awards for her work and the light it shed on growing up in a not so perfect life.

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Maya Angelou is an inspiration to people of all different ages, genders, and races. She penned an autobiography entitled I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings which talked about her life and growing up as a Black woman. Angelou wrote, "If growing up is painful for the Southern Black girl, being aware of her displacement is the rust on the razor that threatens the throat. It is an unnecessary insult" (I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings). Angelou talks of how, even as a child, her life was far from normal. She used her writing talent to show how she still experienced racial discrimination and was not treated as an equal. Despite these struggles, Angelou knew she wanted to make a difference and break the barrier between races. Angelou became the first African American street car conductor. However, this job wasn't just handed to her. She spent long, tiresome days at interviews and offices hoping to be offered a job. She quickly discovered that no one wanted a colored individual working for them, even though they were in search of new employees. Angelou did not let anything stand in the way of achieving her dreams. She woke up, ate breakfast, left home, and went to interviews until her perseverance and determination paid off. Finally she was offered a job. Maya Angelou inspired. She became a well known figure in America's culture and is an idol to many people. Angelou, not only a talented author, was also,"The first black woman director in Hollywood, Angelou wrote, produced, directed, and starred in productions for stage, film, and television" (Poets.org). During this period of time, it was uncommon to see an African American individual dream of, let alone attain these achievements. She inspired not only African Americans, but everyone, to follow their dreams because they can achieve great things. Angelou proved racial stereotypes wrong. She used her talents to portray and express her feelings, thoughts, and beliefs through creative and nonviolent ways.

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"Resilient: characterized or marked by resilience : such as, a : capable of withstanding shock without permanent deformation or rupture, b : tending to recover from or adjust easily to misfortune or change" (www.merriam-webster.com). Maya Angelou is the definition of resilience. Throughout her life she faced many struggles and challenges that the average person would have chosen to run from. But Angelou chose to fight. She faced these challenges at a very young age: "Although her grandmother instilled pride and confidence in her, her self-image was shattered when she was raped at the age of eight by her mother's boyfriend" (Contemporary Black Biography). Angelou was faced with a situation no one should ever have to face in their life. An experience like this would shut many people down. They would not be able to talk of it, share their story, or ever feel loved and worthy. At only eight years old, this experience could have scarred Angelou for the rest of her life. Such a traumatic event could have had a negative effect on her for the rest of her life. However, Angelou didn't let this come in her way. She turned her life in the right direction and eventually spoke out about rape and her experience to help and inspire other women. It took her time, but eventually Angelou overcame her shame and embarrassment: "When she later heard the news that an uncle had killed her attacker, she felt that her words had killed the man. She fell silent and did not speak for five years" (Poets.org). Angelou felt that because she had told someone of the events that had occurred, it was her fault that this man had died. She did not understand the injustice of the situation and felt that it was one sided. At such a young age, Angelou possessed a very tender and soulful heart that allowed her to be a big enough person to forgive someone whose actions harmed her dearly. She felt a large amount of remorse for this man who did nothing to help her. Angelou was a child when this occurred and at her young age she was still a big enough person to forgive. This shows a surprising amount of resilience because many people would not forgive someone, who caused them both physical and emotional pain, enough to be upset over their death. Angelou was able to bounce back from the challenges she faced and steer her life in the correct direction.