Share:NEW YORK - Maya Angelou, the African American poet and activist, has officially joined a select group of Americans to appear on the currency of the United States government, US authorities announced Tuesday. Angelou, author of “I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings,” will be the first figure commemorated through the American Women Quarters Program, which was signed into law in January 2021. The US Mint “has begun shipping the first coins” with Angelou’s likeness on the American quarter, a 25-cent piece, according to a press release from the agency. “Each 2022 quarter is designed to reflect the breadth and depth of accomplishments being celebrated throughout this historic coin program. Angelou, who delivered the poem at former President Bill Clinton’s first inauguration, died in 2014.

Source: The Nation January 12, 2022 04:42 UTC