Marguerite Annie Johnson or more commonly known as Maya Angelou, was born on the 4th of April 1928 and was an American author, poet, dancer, actress and singer. Growing up her family had a tough time getting money because of the harsh economics of African Americans. In her first book (autobiography) that was released ‘I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings’ she talked about her personal life, some of her books include the theme of racism, and how it needs to be criticized and changed. She was well known for being a respected speaker of black people and for women too. After her hit with ‘I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings’ she kept the same writing ritual for many years, early in the morning she would check into a hotel room with no pictures on the walls, writing on a legal pad, also having a deck of cards for solitaire, a thesaurus and a bible, she could write up to 10-12 pages in a day. She would usually write about traumatic experiences. She has recently dies at the age of 86, on the 28th May 2014.
Equality
You declare you see me dimly
through a glass which will not shine,
though I stand before you boldly,
trim in rank and marking time.
You do own to hear me faintly
as a whisper out of range,
while my drums beat out the message
and the rhythms never change.
Equality, and I will be free.
Equality, and I will be free.
You announce my ways are wanton,
that I fly from man to man,
but if I'm just a shadow to you,
could you ever understand ?
We have lived a painful history,
we know the shameful past,
but I keep on marching forward,
and you keep on coming last.
Equality, and I will be free.
Equality, and I will be free.
Take the blinders from your vision,
take the padding from your ears,
and confess you've heard me crying,
and admit you've seen my tears.
Hear the tempo so compelling,
hear the blood throb in my veins.
Yes, my drums are beating nightly,
and the rhythms never change.
Equality, and I will be free.
Equality, and I will be free.
Maya Angelou
through a glass which will not shine,
though I stand before you boldly,
trim in rank and marking time.
You do own to hear me faintly
as a whisper out of range,
while my drums beat out the message
and the rhythms never change.
Equality, and I will be free.
Equality, and I will be free.
You announce my ways are wanton,
that I fly from man to man,
but if I'm just a shadow to you,
could you ever understand ?
We have lived a painful history,
we know the shameful past,
but I keep on marching forward,
and you keep on coming last.
Equality, and I will be free.
Equality, and I will be free.
Take the blinders from your vision,
take the padding from your ears,
and confess you've heard me crying,
and admit you've seen my tears.
Hear the tempo so compelling,
hear the blood throb in my veins.
Yes, my drums are beating nightly,
and the rhythms never change.
Equality, and I will be free.
Equality, and I will be free.
Maya Angelou
Context
The context that Maya Angelou used in this poem relates to her past and her strong beliefs that African Americans should get the same rights as everyone else. In this poem she relates that the white people in America have a ‘blurred’ image of African Americans and that they just do not listen to them. When she was a child her family had trouble earning money, because they were not equal, so she knows what not being treated fairly is like. It seems that Maya Angelou is reading this poem due to her trouble in the past and knowledge about this problem.