The Life and Legacy of Maya Angelou Presented By: Joshua Darby, Nikita Davis, Chase Fox and Rydon Musungu

The woman who is…Maya Angelou Maya has been acknowledged as a master scholar throughout her works and accomplishments. Becoming what she is today took time and a lot of struggles but overcoming these challenges Maya changed a lot of people with her remarkable thoughts and ideas and had a strong hand on how, not only America, but the world takes it’s steps to become one united human race.

Becoming the inspirational leader we know today… Dr. Maya Angelou was born on April 4, 1928 as Marguerite Ann in Saint Louis, Missouri. When Maya was a little girl her mother’s boyfriend raped her

Continue… As she grew older the inspiration from her teacher encouraged to get more into arts and performing. Around the age of sixteen she won a scholarship to study dance and drama, at the San Francisco Labor School. She dropped out of high school to become the first black teacher at the school. She later completed high school and gave birth to her son Guy, a few weeks after graduating. As a single mother she had two jobs to support her family. She is celebrated as a poet, novelist, educator, memoirist, dramatist, producer, actress, historian, filmmaker, and civil rights activist. As a leader in society Maya Angelou has developed a mindset that encourages people to move forward with life and develop your own inspirations through life. As a speaker and a writer many of her books are guidelines for men, woman and younger people to develop their inter-self.

The purpose of her dedication… Maya Angelou didn’t just have a purpose she had a dream and a legacy to live. Maya had an inspiration to live life to the fullest and let nothing in life bring her down. She believed her purpose on earth is to give people an insight on what life is supposed to be no matter how hard or what you go through as a child. Her life has come from the ground to the sky she is a wonderful example of a master student and reminds us all that we can do whatever we set our minds to. No matter how big or small our dream is it can be done just as long as we can succeed and believe in our hearts. Maya is a phenomenal woman and no one can take that away from her, she gave her all to be where she is today.

Now someone may say that, Maya Angelou’s motivation and drive to inspire people through her words wasn’t as effective or inspiration, as some may believe. I completely disagree with that statement for numerous amounts of reasons. Maya had to face a large amount of adversity to achieve the status she holds today Secondly, I would like to touch on the topic of her not being an inspirational leader, by as an inspirational woman. Lastly, through her wisdom and hard work, she has placed herself in a league of inspirational leaders that the world will remember forever. Let our voices be heard…..

The views of a African American Woman… whom as been driven by the words of Maya Angelou (Nikita’s Relations) discovered that her childhood is somewhat similar to mine my grandmother came to me and said life goes on no matter what happens in life. So as Maya did I took those words of wisdom and kept on moving forward. I was sent to live with my grandmother as Maya was and both of us were put into better situations. With my relation to Maya she dropped out of high school but she later completed. I continued my education without dropping out, but along the way I still discovered the symbolic vision of a drop out.. In my college experience today I still struggle to this day with the concepts of understanding a test and writing an understandable essay. Throughout my studies about Maya Angelou I have found that she has inspired me to keep pushing and never give up on life.

The views of a whom has never known the stories of Maya.. (Chase’s Relation) What one can learn from this is that even when things are looking down, to never give up. Life is rough and it will always throw curve balls at you but only you allow it to affect how your life is going to turn out. Maya could have given up because being a single teen mother is no easy task. Raising a child is one of the most special things a mother can do but when you have no experience and the bills just add up it can get frustrating. She stuck to her goals and pursued dreams that never everyone could do. Her talents in music and poetry pushed her to be a success for her and her son and anybody can look at this and motivate themselves to push forward. The things that happen to you your hardships, your worries, they are in the past. There is nothing you can do to change what has already happened but what one can change is there future. Life can take you to so many places, it is random at times but for the most part everyone can jump the hurdles and never look back is all up to oneself. Not everybody is going to support you on your beliefs, but if you feeling strongly about something it shouldn’t matter what someone thinks. Everything is a choice, your work style, your studying habits; even eating patterns can affect the way you live

The views of a inspired African American Male… (Joshua’s Relations) In my life, I hold a lot of the Maya Angelou’s principals near and dear to my heart. For example, a lot of her poems and teaching had to do with a person finding a purpose in their life. To me, that is a vital part of living. A person needs to believe in their hearts that there is a positive purpose for God giving us the chance at life. Also something else I learned from Maya is the fact that, no matter what adversity comes your way, you are in control of your destiny. In order transform yourself in the way that Maya did, from a prostitute to a motivational speaker, it takes a firm realization and understanding that we have control over our lives Finally, Maya found motivation to become a master in her profession. She was determined to make a change with her words and thus this also inspires me. I am an inspired Rhythm and Blues (R&B) singer. With my music, I want to touch billions of people and hopefully be able to inspire them to do something they love do. The words of my songs are meant to open the eyes of my listeners to a whole new way of life and thinking.

A Legacy…Never to be Forgotten…. Maya Angelou spent a lifetime helping others. Having been through so much and to be where she is today took a lot of great effort and strenuous work. Her poems have said a lot more then words, her books have touched a lot of hearts, and her work has changed a whole life style of hate. She proved that there is a lot more to a person then how they look; it is how a person acts on how they should be judged. Her novels will go on in history as will her life story. She has been a role model to all, and if one works hard enough they can accomplish anything in the world as she has shown. One can learn from these accomplishments to master themselves and to do something good for themselves and others. It is possible, you just have to overcome yourself because it is said that you are your own worst enemy that nobody can bring yourself down if you do not allow them to do so. To become a master student and to be remembered is not based on how rich you are or how fancy your things are, it’s the person inside yourself that makes you a success and allows others to see the strength you possess, so don’t let the small things in life lead you away from your dreams. Become the person you know you can be and nothing can stop you.