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Maya Angelou's Influence On America

1242 Words5 Pages

An influential American is someone who influences America to be what we know it as today. Maya Angelou, Bill Cosby, and Malcolm X are all people who lived during the time of segregation, a hard time that African American faced. They used their life situations, and impacted Americans with their positivity and inspiration. Angelou was a positive poet, teacher, dancer, and songwriter; Cosby produced positive television shows revolving around ideal families; and X was a civil rights activist and minister.
Maya Angelou was born in St. Louis, Missouri, on April 4th, 1928, she lived a long inspirational and positive life and left a huge mark on many during her time here; Angelou died May 28th 2014 in Winston-Salem North Carolina. Angelou didn’t have …show more content…

X became the minister of Temple No. 7 and No. 11. He influenced African Americans to stand up to racism, no matter what it took. “You don’t have peaceful revolution,” said X. (Biography.com Editors X) By the 60’s X had emerged as a lead voice of civil rights with a statement message that altered from Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.. “I feel that Malcolm has done himself and our people a great disservice.” Dr. King believed in nothing but peaceful protest, X believed that if it took violence for the point to be made so be it. After X returned from his journey to Mecca, he came back with a different mindset. He gained peaceful aspect to problems and was less angered. X used this method to deliver speeches and take part in protest with Dr.King. On February 21t 1965 X went to deliver a speech in Manhattan when he was shot 15 times by three gunmen. X died at the age of 39, he left behind his six children and wife, Betty Sanders.
Angelou, Cosby, and X were all influential Americans who impacted America as we know it today. Without X we wouldn’t have had a leader that was willing to do whatever it took to help overcome segregation. Without Angelou and Cosby we wouldn’t have had inspirational and positive African Americans to look up to. They taught us that positivity is something that can happen in our lives, and we can turn a bad situation around and make it into something

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