Maya Angelou Becomes First Black Woman to Appear on United States Quarter Coin
- The late poet and social activist, Maya Angelou, has become the first-ever Black woman to be featured on US quarter coin
- The 25-cent coin which has an image of the poet who passed on in 2014 went into circulation on Monday, January 10, 2022
- Maya, born in 1928, became an essayist and poet who worked with Martin Luther King Jr and Malcolm X during the Civil Rights Movement.
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A poet has made history as far as the Black race is concerned in the United States after being featured on the country's quarter coin.
Late Maya Angelou was depicted in the quarter with open and outstretched arms and had behind her a flying bird and rising sun.
Source: UGC
The new quarter recently went into circulation
According to Al Jazeera, the 25-cent quarter coin which had the image of the deceased was circulated on Monday, January 10, 2022.
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Legit.ng gathered that the coin is one of the numerous coins that would be released via a programme aimed at honouring prominent women in US history which was signed in 2021.
“...Each 2022 quarter is designed to reflect the breadth and depth of accomplishments being celebrated throughout this historic coin program. Maya Angelou, featured on the reverse of this first coin in the series, used words to inspire and uplift,'' US Mint Deputy Director Ventris Gibson said.
Other personalities to be featured in the coins are the first female US astronaut Sally Ride; the first female chief of the Cherokee Nation and a campaigner for indigenous rights Wilma Mankiller as well as a Chinese-American film star in Hollywood Anna May Wong, BBC News reports.
Okonjo-Iweala's sister wins huge award in US
Meanwhile, YEN.com.gh previously reported that Okonjo-Iweala's sister had become the first black woman to win the family doctor award in the US.
Dr Njideka Udochi has emerged as the family doctor of the year 2021 in Maryland, USA.
Udochi, a medicine graduate from the University of Nigeria, with over 33 years of experience in the medical line becomes the first black female winner of the reputable award.
The family physician, according to Nigeria Abroad, is the founder of Millennial Family Care and was recognized as the top doctor by Baltimore Magazine in 2019. The Maryland Academy of Family Physicians usually recognizes members that do exceedingly well as far as the tenets and ethos that guide family physicians are concerned.
Chimamanda Adichie breaks 41-year-old record at US university
In other related news, YEN.com.gh reported that writer Chimamanda Adichie had broken a 41-year-old record.
The information was confirmed by Africa Facts Zone on social media.
"In May 2020, Chimamanda Adichie will become the first black woman since 1978 to deliver a Commencement Speech at Ivy League School, University of Pennsylvania," the message said.
Adichie was also honoured with the 'Doctor of Humane Letters (LHD)' at the event scheduled for May 2020. The honour is reserved for those who have excelled in their chosen professions and areas like science, literature, religion, and government.
The university notes that Adichie's works have compelling narratives and fascinating commentary including on complex cultural issues and that these have a way to elevate the power of the individual voice.
The other black woman, who delivered a speech at the institution is Patricia Harris and this was in 1978.
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Nathaniel Crabbe (Human-Interest editor) Nathaniel Crabbe is a journalist and editor with a degree in Journalism from the Ghana Institute of Journalism, where he graduated in 2015. He earned his master's from UPSA in December 2023. Before becoming an editor/writer of political/entertainment and human interest stories at Asaase Radio, Crabbe was a news reporter at TV3 Ghana. With experience spanning over ten years, he now works at YEN.com.gh as a human interest editor. You can reach him via nathaniel.crabbe@yen.com.gh.
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