Maya Angelou Achievements

"I've learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel". This is a famous quote written by Maya Angelou. Angelou is known as one of the most influential African women of all times (Maya 1). She is best known for her famous poems about injustices, tribulations, and experiences that she went through. For instance, Still I Rise, Phenomenal Woman, and I know why the caged bird sings, are some of her examples (Maya 2). Angelou was not only a famous poet, but an inspirational speaker, book writer, civil rights activist, actress, and dancer. One of her most fascinating accomplishments is being the First African American woman, to have her screenplay produced. The name

When he got assassinated, she began working closely with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Soon after Dr. Martin Luther King got assassinated Maya was devastated, so she wrote a book, "I Know Why the Cage Bird Sings" (Maya 2014). This is just one example of how Maya turned one of her obstacles into an accomplishment. Her book "I Know Why the Cage Bird Sings", was published in 1970, and Maya became the First African American Woman to be on the best -seller list. The success of her book is what lead her to be a national figure. Two years later she wrote the screenplay "Georgia, Georgia". She accomplished two things by writing this screenplay: Maya became the first African American Woman to be filmed and she was nominated for the Pulitzer Prize. Maya became a very successful woman. She was invited by successive presidents of the United States to take part in different things. Some of the things that the Presidents asked her to do here: President Ford appointed her to the American Revolution Bicentennial commission, President Carter invited her to serve on the Presidential Commission for the International Year of the Woman, and President Clinton requested that she compose a poem to read at his inauguration in 1993. She composed and read her poem at his inauguration titled " On the Pulse of the Morning". As Maya got older she continued to be a part of movies and films such as Poetic Justice, Roots, documentaries, and directed a feature film Down in the Delta. Her public works include a list of more than 30 titles such as Just give me a cool drink of water 'fore I die, wouldn't take nothing for my journey now, and Even the stars look lonesome. In 2000 Maya was honored with the presidential medal of the arts, and received the Ford's theatre Lincoln medal in 2008. Again, in that year she narrated an award-winning documentary, "The Black Candle", and published a