Maya Angelou, is an author, poet, lecturer, playwright, actress, singer and dancer. She was born on April 4, 1928, in St. Louis. At age 3, after her parents separated, she was sent to live with her paternal grandmother in a segregated town in rural Arkansas. Angelou became nationally known in 1970 with the publication of her book, I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings, which was a National Book Award nominee. The autobiography recounts her painful experiences with Southern racism. After living in California for many years, she returned to the South, where she is Reynolds Professor of American Studies a lifetime appointment at Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, N.C.
Mayas' Poetry || African-American Pioneers