The U.S. Mint has started rolling out quarters which feature late American author and activist Maya Angelou, the first Black woman to appear on the coin. The coin is part of the American Women Quarters programme, the U.S. Mint said.
Angelou rose to international prominence after the publication of her groundbreaking autobiography, “I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings,” with its unflinching account of rape and racism in the segregated South.
At age 7, Angelou was raped by her mother’s boyfriend, who was later beaten to death in an assault that some believed was carried out by Angelou’s uncles.
The trauma of the rape and her assailant’s death left Angelou mute for six years. She began writing during that silent period. She died in 2014 aged 86.
The prolific African-American writer was known for her lyrical prose and regal speaking voice.
The quarter has for the last 90 years shown the nation’s first president, George Washington, on one side and an eagle on the other.
The new quarters show Washington on one side and Angelou on the other.
“Each time we redesign our currency, we have the chance to say something about our country — what we value, and how we’ve progressed as a society,” U.S. treasury secretary Janet Yellen said. “I’m very proud that these coins celebrate the contributions of some of America’s most remarkable women, including Maya Angelou.”
The recipient of more than 30 honorary degrees, Angelou read “On the Pulse of Morning” at the 1992 inauguration of former President Bill Clinton.
Angelou’s reading marked the first time an African-American woman wrote and presented a poem at a presidential inauguration. In 2010, Barack Obama awarded Angelou the Presidential Medal of Freedom, and she was the 2013 recipient of the Literarian Award, an honorary National Book Award for contributions to the literary community.
The American Women Quarters programme also features: Sally Ride, the first American woman in space and Wilma Mankiller, the first female principal chief of the Cherokee Nation among others.
Nina Otero-Warren, a New Mexico suffrage leader and Anna May Wong, a Chinese American film star. Yellen has also signalled support for recognising former slave and abolitionist Harriet Tubman on U.S. currency.
Obama launched a project to put Tubman’s face on the $20 bill but it stalled under the administration of Donald Trump.
Featured Image Credit: The writer and poet found fame after the publication of her autobiography I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings | THE DEPARTMENT OF TREASURY/AFP VIA GETTY IMAGES
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