She referenced everything from biblical scripture to Hamilton in one of the most talked about moments of the ceremony.
With urgency and assertion, she began by asking: “Where can we find light/In this never-ending shade?” and used her own poetry and life story as an answer.
The poem’s very title,
The Hill We Climb, suggested both labour and transcendence.
It was an extraordinary task for Ms Gorman, the youngest by far of the poets who have read at presidential inaugurations since Kennedy invited Robert Frost in 1961, with other predecessors including Maya Angelou and Elizabeth Alexander.
Mindful of the past, she wore earrings and a caged bird ring – a tribute to Angelou’s classic memoir I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings – given to her by Orpah Winfrey, a close friend of the late writer.
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Mattel is honoring the legacy of Maya Angelou by creating a new Barbie doll modeled after the American poet, author and civil rights activist, The Hill reported.
The doll was released Jan. 14 – just ahead of Black History Month – as a “celebration of Dr. Maya Angelou’s extraordinary life and work,” according to The Hill.
The Angelou doll is the latest addition to the Barbie Inspiring Women series, a collection of nine other dolls released by Mattel that “pays tribute to incredible heroines of their time,” according to the company’s website. The series celebrates courageous and inspiring female role models such as woman’s suffrage activist Susan B. Anthony and the first female astronaut, Sally Ride. The Angelou doll is the tenth role model to join the collection, Mattel said.
WASHINGTON, DC - JANUARY 20: Youth Poet Laureate Amanda Gorman speaks at the inauguration of U.S. President Joe Biden on the West Front of the U.S. Capitol on January 20, 2021 in Washington, DC. During today’s inauguration ceremony Joe Biden becomes the 46th president of the United States. (Photo by Rob Carr/Getty Images) ORG XMIT: 775612666
Rob Carr, Getty
Following in the footsteps of Maya Angelou and Robert Frost, Amanda Gorman wrote her way into history Wednesday with her performance at the inauguration of President Joe Biden.
Unlike Frost who was 86 when he became the first poet to speak at the presidential inaugural in 1961 or Angelou, who was 64 when she spoke at the 1993 inaugural, Gorman is just 22 the youngest poet to speak at a presidential inauguration.