The Life of Maya Angelou

By lcperez

  • Marguerite Ann Johnson (Maya) is born

    St. Louis, Missouri

  • Southern Christian Leadership Conference

    At the request of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Maya became the northern coordinator for the SCLC.

  • Maya Moves to Africa

    Maya and her partner, Vusumzi Make, an exiled activist from South Africa, move to Cairo, Egypt

  • Maya Moves to Ghana

    Angelou breaks up with partner and moves in with son. She continued her work as a feature editor of The African Review and also worked as an administrator at the University of Ghana.

  • Maya Moves Back to USA

    Maya wanted to help Malcolm X build his Organization of Afro-American Unity. He was assassinated shortly after the move.

  • Maya's First Book is Published

    "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings" is officially published.

  • Maya at Wake Forest University

    Maya was named the first Reynold's Professor of American Studies, a lifetime appointment.

  • Maya wins the Grammy: "Best Spoken Word Album"

    Maya wins her first Grammy, for inaugural poem "On the Pulse of Morning".

  • Maya's Presidential Delivery Poem

    At the request of President Clinton, Maya wrote and delivered a poem at his 1993 presidential inauguration.

  • Maya Recieves Mother Teresa Award

    This was presented by the St. Bernadette Institute of Sacred Art in Albuquerque, New Mexico. She was chosen after being nominated by the public at large.

  • Maya Receives Presidential Medal of Freedom

    Maya was awarded the 2010 Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest civilian honor in the U.S., by President Barack Obama.

  • Maya Angelou Dies

    Maya dies in her home in Winston-Salem, North Carolina due to suffering heart problems.