Winner of awards such as the NAACP, Pulitzer and Presidential Medal of Freedom, Maya Angelou will forever be one of the most well known poets and authors in the world. She was born on April 4th 1928 in St. Louis, Missouri. Maya Angelou is known for her famous pieces such as, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sing, Phenomenal Woman and Still I Rise. Maya Angelou was very active in the civil rights movement. She worked with Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and Malcolm X.
Before Maya Angelou received the voice she is remembered for, it didn’t develop without trauma. At the young age of 7, she was raped by one of her mother’s boyfriends. When she spoke up about the incident, he was convicted, released and later found dead. As a result of his death, Maya Angelou blamed herself. She thought that her words caused harm to others. Ultimately, it triggered selective mutism, a form of anxiety disorder that lasted for five years.
Maya Angelou’s Still I Rise is what inspired my #riseofRosier title. I have performed the poem twice. The poem to me symbolized that as an individual with a disability, no matter how many times I get counted out, I must still continue to rise. Before my research, I wasn’t aware of Ms. Angelou’s selective mutism, but now that I do, the poem has that much more meaning.
Thank you, Ms. Angelou for being our phenomenal woman.
Sources
#stillRising
#stillRising 