Maya Angelou was born Marguerite Ann Johnson on April 4, 1928. Angelou is an internationally respected poet, writer, educator actress, producer and an important figure in the American Civil Rights Movement. She has been called "America's most visible black female autobiographer."
Angelou is known for her series of six autobiographies, starting with I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, (1969) which was nominated for a National Book Award. Her volume of poetry, Just Give Me a Cool Drink of Water 'Fore I Diiie (1971) was nominated for the Pulitzer Prize.
Angelou produced and starred in the great play Cabaret for Freedom and starred in The Blacks. She wrote the original screenplay and musical score for the film Georgia, Georgia and was both author and executive producer of a five-part television miniseries, Three Way Choice.
Angelou's accomplishments have earned her the Ladies' Home Journal Woman of the Year Award and a Matrix Award in the field of books. She received the Golden Eagle Award for her documentary, Americans in the Arts, produced by PBS. She is one of the women admitted into the Director's Guild. In 1974, she was appointed by Gerald Ford to the Bi-Centennial Commission and later by Jimmy Carter to the Commission for International Woman of the Year.
Angelou recited her poem "On the Pulse of Morning" at President Bill Clinton's inauguration in 1993 (view video clip here). She has been highly honored for her body of work, including being awarded over 30 honorary degrees.
CLICK HERE to watch video interviews of Maya Angelou, from Biography.com.
Learn more about her life and her many accomplishments by visiting the resources below:
Sources: WIC Biography, Wikipedia.org
 As we pay tribute to the many African American leaders of past and present, we remember the pioneers that paved the way in song. With the help of Songs for Teaching, below are just a few musical selections to observe Black History Month. |
| Follow the Drinking Gourd |
| Get on Board, Little Children |
| I Have a Dream - Musical Tribute to MLK |
| I'm On My Way |
| Kumbaya |
| Rosa Parks |
| Stand Up for Your Beliefs |
| We've Got The Whole World In Our Hands |
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| 1850: First organization of black workers is established in New York City, called The American League of Colored Laborers. |
| 1869: National Labor Union becomes first organization of white workers to advocate creation of black labor unions. |
| 1869: The Colored National Labor Union is formed. |
| 1918: First federal bureau to attempt to ease labor-related racial tensions caused by blacks leaving the South is established. |
| 1941: The Fair Employment Practice Commission is established, which is the first federal agency to provide fair employment practices |
| 1945: In New York, the Ives-Quinn Act is passed. It was the first state legislation prohibiting discrimination in employment on the basis of race, creed or color. |
| 1948: Truman signs Executive Order 9981 |
| 1954: Supreme Court rules on Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas case, which stated segregation in public schools was unconstitutional. |
| 1955: Civil Rights Pioneer Rosa Parks refuses to give up her seat to a white passenger; Montgomery Bus Boycott ensues. |
| 1957: Martin Luther King and other African American leaders establish the Southern Christian Leadership Conference. |
| 1963: Nearly 200,000 people join the March on Washington, where Martin Luther King delivers his infamous, "I Have a Dream" speech. |
| 1964: The Civil Rights Act of 1964 is passed, making it the first federal fair employment legislation. |
| 1965: The Voting Rights Act of 1965 is passed by Congress, which allows all colors and creeds to vote. |
| 1983: Guion “Guy” Bluford, Jr. becomes first African American in space. |
| 2007: Tony Dungy becomes first African American head coach to win Super Bowl; his Colts defeated the Chicago Bears on February 4th, 2007. |
| 2009: Barack Hussein Obama II becomes the 44th President of the United States; the first African American to hold the office. |
