Liberian Literary Magazine
Promoting Liberian literature, Arts and Culture
the voice of black women in the world.
Maya served on two presidential
committees during Gerald Ford, and later
Jimmy Carter’s term. It was in 2000 that
Maya received the National Medal of
Arts Award presented to her by President
William Clinton. Maya doesn’t stop there
as she receives the Presidential Medal of
Freedom, the highest civilian honor in the
United States presented to her by
President Barack H. Obama. Receiving
these
prestigious
awards
were
accompanied by over 50 honorary
degrees. Maya achieved so much in her
lifetime but gave so much to the people
who knew her, and those who will follow
in her footsteps and achieve greatness.
Poetry - She left us with such famous
poems as Just Give Me A Cool Drink of
Water ‘Fore I Die, and On the Pulse of
Morning, to name a few. The honors, she
received during her career included two
NAACP Image Awards in the category of
outstanding literary work later in her
career, 2005 and 2009.
Autobiographies - She enjoyed writing so
much that she continued writing several
more autobiographies throughout her
career. Her autobiographies included All
God’s Children Need Traveling Shoes, A
Song Flung Up to Heaven, of course, The
Cage Bird Sings, and a couple of wellknown writings.
Essays - Continuing in her writing career,
Maya produced an essay collection
Wouldn’t Take Nothing for My Journey
Now” (1994), Letter to My Daughter
(2008), cookbooks including Hallelujah!
The Welcome Table: A Lifetime of
Memories With Recipes (2005) and Great
Food, All Day Long (2010). You think there
is nothing left that Maya Angelou hasn’t
accomplished, but leave it to Maya to
reach heights in another area and that is
her directional debut in 1998 with Down
In the Delta, starring Alfre Woodard.
Profile Maya Angelou
Author, Poet, Civil Rights Activist
Born 1928 – Died 2014
Maya Angelou is an award-winning
author best known for her memoir, I Know
Why the Caged Bird Sings (1969). Also
remembered for her wonderful poetry
and the poem she wrote and read at the
Presidential Inauguration of President
John F. Kennedy.
Talented Actress, Singer, Dancer - This
multi-talented woman, adored by
everyone in the theater, for her acting,
dancing, singing. She was loved and
envied by her audience in whatever she
was doing, whether it was singing in the
church choir, stage acting, or appearing
in such performances as Porgy and Bess
or Calypso Heat Wave.
Maya’s
accomplishments are so numerous it is
difficult to imagine how she did it all in this
one lifetime.
Childhood In Arkansas - We long
remember the racial prejudices and
discrimination endured in certain areas,
such as Arkansas where she lived as a
child and young adult. Fortunately, for
the world, Maya’s strength, intelligence,
and talent forged forward to create the
shining star we enjoyed.
California Bound - Maya moved to San
Francisco, California during World War II,
attending George Washington High
School, graduating and winning a
scholarship to study acting and dance at
the California Labor School. As for her
work, she became the first female San
Francisco Cable Car Conductor, then
followed with her fantastic career.
As a Civil Rights Activist, Maya worked for
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., and Malcolm X
during the late 1960’s to approximately
1975. It was then, in 1975 Maya wrote in
Southern Women Writers: The New
Generation and was immediately
recognized as a spokesperson for
African-American Women and changing
Written by Lee Christine Brownlee
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