By Olu-Victor
Maya Angelou, a celebrated US author and poet died in her home in Winston-Salem, North Carolina aged 86 on Wednesday May 28, 2014.
Angelou was born Marguerite Annie Johnson, in St Louis, Missouri, in 1928. She published seven autobiographies, three books of essays, and several books of poetry, and is also credited with a list of plays, movies, and television shows, in a career spanning over fifty years. She received dozens of awards and over thirty honorary doctoral degrees. She was respected as a spokesperson of black people and women.
Angelou is best known for her series of seven autobiographies, which particularly focuses on her childhood and early adult experiences. The first, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings (1969), tells of her life from childhood to the age of seventeen, an indictment of the racial discrimination she experienced, brought her international recognition and acclaim. Angelou’s major works have been labeled as autobiographical fiction, but many critics have characterized them as autobiographies. She made a deliberate attempt to challenge the common structure of the autobiography by critiquing, changing, and expanding the genre. Her books center on themes such as racism, identity, family, and travel.
In 1993, she read On the Pulse of the Morning at President Clinton’s first inauguration, a performance that made the poem a bestseller. The poem celebrates the diversity of ethnic groups in the US, and calls on the nation to leave behind cynicism and look forward to a new pride in itself, and a new dawn for the country.
Angelou had lived in North Carolina since the early 1980s, when she became a professor at Wake Forest University, a private liberal arts college. A statement from Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem called Angelou “a national treasure whose life and teachings inspired millions around the world”. She supported the founder of the National Black Theater Festival in Winston-Salem, and eventually became its first chairperson in 1989. In 2012, the Maya Angelou Women’s Health and Wellness Center opened in the city. A Street in Winston-Salem is named after Angelou.
“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.”
We will never forget how Angelou made us feel, and the humane wisdom she espoused. Her books taught us that we can survive whatever life throws at us.
Her son, Guy B Johnson, confirming the news in a statement said: “Her family is extremely grateful that her ascension was not belabored by a loss of acuity or comprehension.” “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.”
Yes, she is looking down upon us with love. We are not sad because a part of her remains with us. Yet, it is a painful parting, as we will always yearn for her wisdom.