Blast to the Past- Maya Angelou

By geridout

  • The beginning

    Maya Angelou, birth name Marguerite Annie Johnson, was born in St. Louis, Missouri

  • Birth of Maya's Child

    At 16 years old Maya got pregnant​ and gave birth to a baby boy whom she named Guy

  • The First Black Female Streetcar Conductor in San Francisco

    Angelou worked as a conductor on San Francisco’s streetcar system at the age of 16 even though when she first applied they denied her because of her skin color.

  • How the Nickname Came to Be

    In 1952, she briefly married a Greek sailor, Tosh Angelos and after their divorce, Angelou formed her nom du pen by combining her nickname, Maya, with a version of her ex-husband’s last name.

  • SCLC

    Maya accepted the position of northern coordinator for the New York office of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference. It was here she first met Martin Luther King Jr.

  • Not Only an Author but an Editor

    Angelou moved to Cairo, Egypt with Guy and her new husband civil-rights activist Vusamzi Make, and took a job as editor of the Arab Observer which she held for over a year.

  • Off to Ghana

    After splitting​ with her second husband Angelou decided to stay in Africa with her son, and relocated to Ghana with other African American intellectuals as part of the Pan-Africanist movement

  • Malcolm X

    Angelou met the black activist Malcolm X while living in Ghana. She moved back to the U.S. in 1965 to help him build his civil rights organization, but he was assassinated shortly after their return.

  • First Novel

    Maya published her first novel and biography I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings and it was critically acclaimed.

  • Professor of American Studies

    Maya served as Reynolds Professor of American Studies at Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, North Carolina up until​ her death.

  • The Grammys

    Her first Grammy out of the three she won was the poem she wrote for President Bill Clinton’s inauguration in 1993, “On the Pulse of Morning.’’​

  • Making history

    Maya was lauded for remaining on The New York Times' paperback nonfiction best-seller list for two years which is the longest-running record in the chart's history.

  • Hope for Peace

    Maya became the first recipient of Hope for Peace and Justice Voice of Peace award

  • The End of Her Life But Not Her Legacy

    Maya Angelou passed away in Winston​-Salem, North Carolina after experiencing heath​ issues for a number of years.