Jo Ann A. Mathews's Blog, page 9
June 22, 2022
Women and Adversity: 21st Century Women, Halimah Yacob, President of Singapore


Halimah Yacob, Prime Minister of Singapore (glusea.com)
Women and Adversity:21st Century Women Halimah Yacob
President of Singapore
Restricting qualifications so only ONE person can qualify? That’s what happened in the Republic of Singapore’s 2017 “election.”
Halimah Yacob (pronounced Ha li⸍ mah Ya⸍cob) became the president of Singapore in September 2017, the first woman to attain that post. She has, however, avoided making a comment about how she attained the office. It happens that the qualifications for president were restricted to the extent that she was the only person to qualify. She told the press that she will do her best, “…and that doesn’t change whether there is an election or no election.”
The qualifications limited the candidate to only a Malay, an ethnic minority in Singapore, and someone who has served in government. Anyone from the public sector had other specific qualifications, but the men who chose to run were disqualified.
Thus far there isn’t controversy about Yacob’s performance. As I listen to her speeches and presentations on YouTube, I find that they indicate she is working to improve the lives of the underserved in Singapore.
Singapore merged with Malaysia and was under British control until 1963. In 1965 it broke off from Malaysia and formed the Republic of Singapore, which is between Malaysia and Indonesia. Its capital city is Singapore. About six million people live in this island nation, which is the wealthiest country per capita in Southeast Asia.
Yacob Bio:
Born August 23, 1954 in Singapore, the youngest of five childrenFather was Indian; her mother MalayFather died when she was eightHelped her mother sell items at a food stall to support the familyIs MuslimAttended the Singapore Chinese Girls’ School and Tanjong Katong Girls’ School, a rarity for a MalayEarned a Bachelor of Laws degree from University of Singapore in 1978 and called to the Bar in 1981Earned a Master of Laws degree from National University of Singapore in 2001Married Mohammed Abdullah Alhabshee, a businessman, in 1980The couple have five childrenCareer:
Worked at National Trades Union Congress in various capacitiesA Member of Parliament from 2001-2017Resigned MP to run for presidentIn the past, the president’s position was primarily ceremonial, but Singapore’s Constitution was amended so the president can veto government budgets and key public appointments. This gives Jacob a lot of power. She is another woman leader who may ascent to Prime Minister.
Read more about Yacob:
www.gov.sg/article/president-halimah-...
How Did Halimah Yacob Become the President of Singapore and Who are Her Family Members?
www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-41237318
READERS: WHAT IS YOUR IMPRESSION OF SANNA MARIN? ESPECIALLY LIKE BECAUSE_______? DISLIKE BECAUSE_______? LET ME KNOW.
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June 8, 2022
Women and Adversity: 21st Century Women, Robinah Nabbanja, First Woman Prime Minister
Women and Adversity: 21st Century Women Robinah Nabbanja First Woman Prime Minister of Uganda 
Rt. Hon. Robinah Nabbanja, Prime Minister, Uganda (https://nipn.opm.go.ug/staff/dr-ruhak...)
Talk about wading into unknown waters! Except for Idi Amin, I don’t know anything about Uganda. Its governing bodies and education system are different from the U.S. and can be difficult to understand. Add the spellings and pronunciations of names, and I must be extra careful with details.
First, Uganda is a landlocked country in eastern Africa with a population of about 35 million people. It ranks 19 on the list of the 20 poorest countries in the world. Under 25 percent of children attend secondary school.
Robinah Nabbanja (pronounced Robinah′ Na ban′ ya), was appointed Prime Minister of Uganda by President Yoweri Museveni, and Parliament approved the appointment in June 2021. She is the first woman to hold that office since Uganda gained its independence in 1962. As Prime Minister she is chair of the Cabinet.
Why would Museveni appoint her? The two have a history of sorts. She greeted him when he came to visit her school before he was president, and her uncle protected him when he was being pursued by government soldiers during the Bush Wars of the 80s.
Positives about Nabbanja:
Advocates for improving educationListens to what the people wantWants to stamp out corruption in the governmentNegatives:
Accused of interfering with the job of the minister of relief disasterHad a journalist suspended for leaking a clip in which she lost her train-of-thought mid-addressCost the government $3 billion for diverting COVID funds to those who earn money in citiesNabbanja Bio:
Born December 17, 1969, the 7th of 11 childrenReceived her Ordinary Level and Advanced level education from St. Edward’s Secondary School BukuumiReceived diplomas and certificates in leadership, management and development studies from Uganda Martyrs University and other institutionsEarned a bachelor’s degree in Democracy and Development Studies from Uganda Martyrs UniversityMarried Hassan Musafiri in 1990The couple have two daughtersCareer:
Taught at Uganda Martyrs Secondary School from 1993-1996Served in various government capacities until she chose to enter elective politics in 2011Contested the woman’s representative in Kibaale District and served from 2011-2016Became the woman representative for Kakumiro District when it was created in 2016Was appointed Minister of State for Health in charge of General Duties in 2019Won re-election to the seat of woman representative for Kakumiro District in January 2021No one is free of missteps, but Nabbanja could be a beacon of progress for Uganda. She might be in line for the presidency.
Learn more about Nabbanja:
PM Nabbanja orders audit into Nakaseke officials – YouTube
PM Nabbanja wants no-show health workers punished | Monitor
Peter Ogwang: 10 Reasons why Robinah Nabbanja is the Right Choice for Prime Minister
READERS: WHAT IS YOUR IMPRESSION OF ROBINAH NABBANJA? ESPECIALLY LIKE BECAUSE_______? DISLIKE BECAUSE_______? LET ME KNOW.
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May 25, 2022
Women and Adversity: 21st Century Women: Sanna Marin, Prime Minister of Finland


Sanna Marin (wp2032bioGraphy.jpg)
Women and Adversity: 21st Century WomenSanna Marin, Prime Minister of FinlandAside from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine prompting Finland, a country of 5.5 million, to apply for membership in NATO, which has gained headlines around the world, Sanna Marin also has gained headlines. As Prime Minister of Finland, she is an example of the emerging “21st century woman”: under 50, intelligent, attractive, social media savvy, politically astute and determined to lead her country to increased prosperity. All of these factors package a confident, modern woman, which includes negatives. I’ll start with what many consider her indiscretions.
October 2020: On the cover of Trendi magazine wearing a blazer with nothing underneath it.January 2020-May 2021: Breakfastgate. Reportedly used more than 14,000 euros of taxpayer money for food at her official residence. She reportedly paid back the entire amount.December 2021: Seen “clubbing” past 4 a.m. after coming in contact with an official who tested positive for COVID.The title of Prime Minister of Finland puts Marin in third place for successionWhat should we know about Marin’s career?
Won a city council seat in Tampere, a city north of Helsinki, in 2012 when she was 27.Was a Member of Parliament in 2015 when she was 30.Became the world’s youngest Prime Minister in 2019 when she was 34.She’s a Social Democrat, the center-to-left party.Advocated joining NATO in her 2022 New Year’s address.Her bio:Her bio:
Born November 16, 1985 in HelsinkiHer parents divorced when she youngShe was raised by her mother and her mother’s same-sex partnerThe first in her family to earn a degree: bachelor’s and master’s degrees in administrative science from University of Tampere.Had daughter Emma Amalia Marin January 28, 2018.Married her daughter’s father, Markus Räikkönen, August 1, 2020Read more about Marin:
What’s it like to be Sanna Marin, the young female Prime Minister of Finland? – YouTube
Finland’s Prime Minister Sanna Marin says the American Dream is best achieved in Nordic countries (savannahnow.com)
Opinion: This is what a nation run by women looks like – CNN
READERS: WHAT IS YOUR IMPRESSION OF SANNA MARIN? ESPECIALLY LIKE BECAUSE_______? DISLIKE BECAUSE_______? LET ME KNOW.
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May 11, 2022
Women and Adversity: Jacinda Ardern, Prime Minister of New Zealand


Jacinda Ardern, P.M of New Zealand (jacinda-ardern-listal.com_.jpg)
Women and Adversity: Jacinda ArdernPrime Minister of New Zealand
It’s fascinating to learn about the women who are the leader of their nation. Currently, there are more than two dozen worldwide, and Jacinda Ardern, Prime Minister of New Zealand, is one of the youngest. She will turn 42 on July 26. New Zealand, with a population of nearly five million is comprised of two main islands in the southwestern section of the Pacific Ocean: the North Island and the South Island and more than 700 smaller islands.
Arden has another claim to fame by being the second woman in history to give birth while in office. (Benazir Bhutto gave birth to a daughter in 1990 when she was prime minister of Pakistan.) She was elected prime minister in 2017 and her daughter Neve Te Aroha Ardern Gayford was born in June 2018.
Ardern hasn’t married her partner, Clarke Gayford, a television host and stay-at-home dad. The couple had planned a January 2022 wedding until New Zealand experienced several cases of the Omicron variant. So far the couple haven’t rescheduled their wedding.
What should we know about Ardern?
Born in 1980 in Hamilton, New ZealandAlways interested in politics and joined the Labour Party, most say at age 17Earned a bachelor’s degree in communication studies and politics in 2001 from university of Waikato in HamiltonRaised a Mormon but left that church in 2005 because she supports gay rights and same-sex marriage, both of which the Mormon church opposesHer career:
Elected to New Zealand’s Parliament in 2008 when she was 28, the youngest member at the timeBecame leader of the Labour Party in 2017 when its leader stepped down and named her to succeed himBecame P.M. when a coalition government formed in late 2017Labeled the 2019 mass shootings at two mosques in Christchurch during Friday prayer a terrorist attack. Dozens were injured; 51 were killed. She wore a hijab when she went to comfort the families of the victims.She banned the kinds of gun used in the attack and its modifications.Was re-elected P.M. in 2020 in a landslideNegatives:
Nearly 25 percent of New Zealand children live in povertyMaori, the original inhabitants of New Zealand, continue to have lower income, poor housing conditions and poorer health than other residentsWhen the pandemic hit, she banned entry into the country to any foreigner coming from China and closed borders to non-citizens and non-residents. A judge later ruled these restrictions as unconstitutional.Her popularity plunged when the Delta variant hit New Zealand.Read more about Ardern:
How Jacinda Ardern’s popularity bubble burst – The Global Herald
How did New Zealand become Covid-19 free? – BBC News
Covid-19 NZ: Jacinda Ardern isolating at home as partner Clarke Gayford infected | Stuff.co.nz
READERS: WHAT IS YOUR IMPRESSION OF JACINDA ARDERN? ESPECIALLY LIKE BECAUSE_______? DISLIKE BECAUSE_______? LET ME KNOW IN THE BOX BELOW.
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April 27, 2022
Women and Adversity: Sheikh Hasina Prime Minister of Bangladesh


Sheikh Hasina, Prime Minister of Bangladesh
Women and Adversity: Sheikh HasinaPrime Minister of Bangladesh
I have primarily featured women writers on my blog, but I’m shifting gears here and want to highlight women in politics, focusing on women around the world who are heads of state.
Sheikh Hasina (pronounced Shake Hah-see′-nah) was elected Prime Minister of Bangladesh four times and has experienced assassination attempts, imprisonment and exile. That’s a lot of adversity! Her history includes moving from a firm belief in democracy to accusations of autocracy, corruption and violence.
Bangladesh is located in southern Asia and didn’t become an independent country until 1971 when it separated from Pakistan. Hasina’s father Sheikh Mujibur Rahman is considered the founder of Bangladesh and served as its first president from 1971 until he, his wife, three of his five children, other relatives and members of his household were assassinated August 15, 1975. Hasina and her sister, Sheikh Rehana, were in West Germany at the time of the attack.
Facts about Hasina:
Born September 28, 1947 in what was East Bengal, also referred to as East PakistanReceived education from girls’ schools and was politically activeMarried M.A. Wazed Miah, a nuclear physicist, in 1968Received a degree from University of Dhaka in 1973Forced to live in exile after the assassinationsBangladesh has experienced violence and upheaval since its inception, but Hasina immersed herself in politics and was determined to make Bangladesh a democratic country. She was elected Prime Minister for the first time in 1996 but was defeated in 2001. She regained the post in 2008, was reelected in 2014 and again in 2018, although accusations of fraud and corruption have tainted this latest election.
Some of her achievements as prime minister:
The poverty rate in Bangladesh has dropped from almost 19 percent in 2010 to nine percent in 2018The Asian Development Bank ranked Bangladesh as the fastest-growing economy in the Asia-Pacific regionInstituted programs that benefit farmers, widows and the disabledAfter a long illness, Hasina’s husband died in 2009. The couple have two children, son Sajeeb Wazed, a businessman, and daughter Saima Wazed, an autism activist.
Read more about Hasina:
www.weforum.org/agenda/2019/10/the-secret-to-bangladesh-s-economic-success-the-sheikh-hasina-factor
https://archive.dhakatribune.com/bangladesh/2021/09/28/happy-birthday-to-pm-sheikh-hasina-2
www.latimes.com/world/la-fg-bangladesh-election-results-20181231-story.html
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April 13, 2022
Women and Adversity: Queen Elizabeth II, Queen of England from 1952-present
Women and Adversity: Queen Elizabeth II Queen of England from 1952-present
Queen Elizabeth II
Although most people refer to Queen Elizabeth II as the Queen of England, she is actually Queen of the United Kingdom and 14 other commonwealths. She follows strict rules of protocol, the British Constitution and the Church of England, so imagine her distress when her family doesn’t follow suit, especially since three of her four children are divorced. The Church of England did not relax its rules on divorce until 2002. Then in 2019 2nd son Prince Andrew is accused of sexual abuse, and in 2020 grandson Prince Harry steps back from his royal duties and moves to North America. That’s a lot of adversity for this nonagenarian.The Queen is the longest-reigning monarch in the world and celebrates her Platinum Jubilee, the 70th year on the throne, the “weekend” of June 2-5. No other British monarch has ruled this long.
Some facts:
• Born a princess on April 21, 1926 in London. She will turn 96 next week.
• Her father was crowned King George VI after his brother King Edward VIII abdicated to marry twice-divorced American Wallis Warfield Simpson. As Head of the Church of England, which did not support divorce at the time, the king had to abdicate or not marry her.
• Her sister Princess Margaret was four years younger. She had no other siblings.
• She married Prince Philip of Greece and Denmark in 1947 at Westminster Abbey. They were third cousins.
• She ascended to the throne when her father died in 1952. She was 25.
• She had two children before she became Queen: Prince Charles in 1948 and Princess Anne in 1950.
• Two more children arrived later: Prince Andrew in 1960 and Prince Edward in 1964.
• Prince Philip died April 9, 2021, two months short of his 100th birthday.
What DON’T you know about Queen Elizabeth II?
• She never went to college and has been criticized for her lack of formal education.
• She had private tutors and basically was homeschooled, but British royals MUST
know a foreign language. QE II speaks fluent French.
• During WWII she was part of the Women’s Auxiliary Territorial Service and learned to drive ambulances and trucks, rebuild engines, change tires and do other mechanical tasks.
• As queen she MUST remain neutral politically and never make public statements.
• She was an accomplished equestrian and continues to breed racehorses.
• She loves the Corgi breed of dogs and has owned 30 over the years.
• She can choose her successor.
Read how the Queen is limited:
www.thelist.com/256836/things-queen-e...
www.grunge.com/346197/rules-queen-eli...
Best books:
The Queen: A Life in Brief by Robert Lacey
The Queen by Ben Pimlott
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March 23, 2022
Women and Adversity: Wilma Rudolph First American Woman to win three Gold Medals at one Olympics


Wilma Rudolph
Olympics Track Star
First American Woman to win three
Gold Medals at one Olympics
Sports and sports figures are not high on my list of interests, but for Women’s History Month I decided to feature Wilma Rudolph after reading a quote of hers: “Never underestimate the power of dreams and the influence of the human spirit.”
Rudolph faced adversity from the time she was born on May 23, 1940, a mere 4.5 pounds, in Saint Bethlehem, TN. The family moved to Clarksville shortly afterward where Rudolph grew up. One of 22 children—her father married twice—she had several illnesses as a child, including pneumonia and scarlet fever, and by the time she was five contracted polio.
Her parents sought medical care from historically Black Meharry Medical College in Nashville, and for two years her mother took her there weekly to help strengthen her left leg. She wore a leg brace until she was nine, but her recovery also progressed because her parents and siblings massaged her leg.
In high school Rudolph excelled at basketball and competed in track. When Ed Temple, Tennessee State’s track and field coach, saw how fast she was, he invited her to join his summer training program, and her skyrocketing career in track began.
She was 16 when she and three other women won the Bronze Medal for their 4×100-meter relay at the 1956 Melbourne Olympic Games. Four years later in 1960 at the Olympic Games in Rome, Rudolph broke track records and won the 100- and 200-meter sprints and the 4×100-meter relay to earn three Gold Medals. She was labeled “The fastest woman in the World.” She retired from competing because she said she wanted to leave at her best. She earned her bachelor’s degree from Tennessee State and began to teach and coach.
She married William Ward in 1961, but they divorced in 1963, and she married her high school sweetheart Robert Eldridge, with whom she had a baby girl when she was in high school. The couple had three more children but divorced in 1980.
Rudolph earned countless other awards, and the 1977 movie Wilma is based on her life. The USPS issued a stamp in her honor in 2004.
Rudolph was diagnosed with brain cancer in July 1994 and later with throat cancer. She died November 12, 1994.
Want to learn more about Wilma Rudolph? Check these:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=8hSe5SGJBns
Wilma Unlimited – How Wilma Rudolph Became the World’s Fastest Woman Read Aloud – YouTube
www.mentalfloss.com/article/627123/wilma-rudolph-facts
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March 9, 2022
Women and Adversity: Eleanor Roosevelt First Lady, Author, Humanitarian


Stamp issued in 1984
Women and Adversity:Eleanor RooseveltFirst Lady, Author, HumanitarianI have featured Eleanor Roosevelt in the past, but for Women’s History Month I thought it appropriate to highlight her again as our most influential First Lady. An item in the winter 2022 National Federation of Press Women newsletter by its president Karen Rowley revealed that Eleanor Roosevelt was a member of the organization. A press card, which is in the FDR Presidential Library, shows Mrs. Roosevelt as an at-large member in 1960. I’ve been a member of the group for 35 years and am proud that it was established, as Rowley writes, in 1937 by 39 women in Illinois, my home state.
I never thought of Roosevelt as a journalist and didn’t know she wrote the syndicated column “My Day” six days a week from 1935 until she died in 1962, almost totally uninterrupted. She has 27 books to her credit and more than 500 published articles in magazines such as Ladies Home Journal and other nationally circulated magazines. This shows the extent of the woman’s talents since she is primarily known as the First Lady from 1933-45 who advocated for civil rights and equal rights for women and minorities. She continued to inspire people around the world after she left the White House when her husband died and traveled the world declaring essential human rights.
Roosevelt was christened Anna Eleanor Roosevelt and is the longest serving First Lady and one of the most respected. Her life was filled with adversity:
Her beautiful mother, Anna Rebecca, was disappointed that Eleanor was unattractive and serious and nicknamed her “granny.”Her father, Elliott, loved her unconditionally, but he was an alcoholic and was away from the family a good deal.Her mother died when Eleanor was 8, and her father died when Eleanor was 10.When she married Franklin D. Roosevelt, her fifth cousin, her mother-in-law disapproved and interfered relentlessly in their lives.Her husband was unfaithful.Roosevelt overcame adversity throughout her life and:
Organized women-only press conferences at the White HouseWas a delegate to the United Nations and helped draft the Universal Declaration of Human RightsNever used a ghostwriterSome of her celebrated books are You Learn by Living: Eleven Keys for a More Fulfilling Life, It’s Up to the Women and her autobiography. Dozens of books about Eleanor Roosevelt are on the market, but articles provide basic information:
Eleanor Roosevelt – The First Lady to the World – YouTube
http://www.biography.com/people/eleanor-roosevelt-9463366
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February 23, 2022
Women and Adversity: Gwendolyn Brooks, First Black to Win a Pulitzer Prize


Gwendolyn Brooks: Poet, Pulitzer Prize Winner
Women and Adversity: Gwendolyn Brooks First Black to Win a Pulitzer PrizeI met Gwendolyn Brooks in 1990 when I asked her to be a featured speaker in a writers’ conference I organized at Prairie State College in Chicago Heights, Illinois. She was one of the most gracious women I have ever met in my life. She was soft-spoken, deliberate and considerate. I was astonished when she produced copies of a few of her books and asked me to choose one she would autograph. I picked Blacks because I thought it defined her ability to express the needs and dreams of all people.
Brooks was the first Black to win a Pulitzer Prize. She won the award—Pulitzer Prize in Poetry—with Annie Allen in 1950. She was Poet Laureate of Illinois from 1968 until her death in 2000 and is one of the most highly acclaimed poets in American literature.
Brooks was born June 7, 1917, in Topeka, Kansas, and was a baby when her family moved to Chicago, Illinois. She endured discrimination and social rejection growing up because of her color.
Encyclopedia of World Biography cites passages from George Kent’s A Life of Gwendolyn Brooks in which he writes Brooks was not accepted by fellow Blacks when she was growing up because she didn’t have social or athletic abilities. She, of course, was hurt at being rejected, so she spent most of her time writing.
Her talent for writing poetry prevailed. When she was thirteen, her first published poem, “Eventide,” appeared in American Childhood magazine. The nationally recognized and respected Black newspaper The Chicago Defender published her poems while she was in high school.
Brooks received an associate degree in literature and arts from Woodrow Wilson Junior College in Chicago (now Kennedy-King College), but had a difficult time finding a job because of her skin color. She became involved with the Youth Council of the National Association of Colored People and was its director of publicity for the Chicago chapter. Her first collection of poetry, A Street in Bronzeville, was published in 1945.
She married Henry Blakely, Jr. in 1939, and the couple had two children, Henry and Nora.
Brooks wrote about prejudice, poverty, discrimination and the plight of Blacks, specifically Black life in Chicago. She was able to capture the desperation, isolation and anguish of the people. She presents situations in a way that people understand.
She died of cancer in Chicago on December 3, 2000. Henry preceded her in death in 1996.
I feature Brooks in my ebook, Women and Adversity, Honoring 23 Black Women, which is available at www.amazon.com and www.barnesandnoble.com.
For more about Brooks:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=UVZ6KTLN7O
www.pulitzer.org/article/frost-williams-no-gwendolyn-brooks
poetryarchive.org/poet/gwendolyn-brooks
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February 9, 2022
Women and Adversity: Maya Angelou Author, Poet, Actress, Activist
Maya Angelou Author, Poet, Actress, Activist (AP photo)
Women and Adversity: Maya AngelouAuthor, Poet, Actress, Activist
When I read that Maya Angelou had written seven autobiographies, I doubted she could maintain interest about her life through all those books. How wrong I was. I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, published in 1969, grabbed my attention immediately. It recounts that her parents separated when she was three, which resulted in her and her brother being sent to Stamps, Arkansas to live with her grandmother where she experienced racial discrimination. Back with her mother when she was seven, she was raped by her mother’s boyfriend. Her uncles were so incensed by this horrendous violation, they beat the perpetrator to death. At the end of the book, Angelou is 17 and gives birth to a son. I couldn’t wait to read the second book in her autobiographical series. That was my reaction as I devoured each of the books.
Born Marguerite Annie Johnson on April 4, 1928 in St. Louis, Angelou chalked up “firsts” in a number of enterprises:
* First black female cable car conductor in San Francisco
* I know Why the Caged Bird Sings became the first nonfiction bestseller by an African-American woman
* First African-American woman to have her screenplay, Georgia, Georgia, produced
* Has the record for being two years on The New York Times paperback nonfiction bestseller list
* First Black woman on the U.S. quarter
The other autobiographies are:
Gather Together in my Name
Singin’ and Swingin’ and Getting’ Merry Like Christmas
The Heart of a Woman
All God’s Children Need Traveling Shoes
A Song Flung Up to Heaven
Mom & Me & Mom
Angelou didn’t marry the father of her son. Her first marriage was to a white Greek sailor. She chose part of his last name and her childhood nickname to form Maya Angelou. Her second marriage was to an African civil rights activist, and her third was to Germaine Greer’s ex-husband. Each of the marriages was brief. Through the 60s Angelou became acquainted with civil rights leaders, including James Baldwin and Malcolm X, and worked for equal rights for blacks. Besides being a writer and poet, she was an actress, dancer and singer. In 1971 she published the Pulitzer Prize-nominated poetry collection Just Give Me a Cool Drink of Water ’Fore I Die.
She died on May 28, 2014 at the age of 86.
I feature Angelou in my ebook Women and Adversity, Honoring 23 Black Women, available at amazon.com and barnesandnoble.com.
More about Angelou:
The Tragic Real-Life Story Of Maya Angelou – YouTube
www.mayaangelou.com
www.womenshistory.org/education-resources/biographies/maya-angelou
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