Hélène

“The white kids were going to have a chance to become Galileos and Madame Curies and Edisons and Ganguins, and our boys (the girls weren't even in on it) would try to be Jesse Owenses and Joe Louises.”
― Maya Angelou, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings

“We have a saying among Black Americans which describes Momma's caution. "If you ask a Negro where he's been, he'll tell you where he's going." To understand this important information, it is necessary to know who uses this tatic and on whom it works. If an unaware person is told a part of the truth (it is imperative that the answer embody truth), he is satisfied that his query has been answered. If an aware person (one who himself uses the stratagem) is given an answer which is truthful but bears only slightly if at all on the question, he knows that the information he seeks is of a private nature and will not be handed to him willingly. Thus direct denial, lying and the revelation of personal affairs are avoided.”
― Maya Angelou, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings

“I read more than ever, and wished my soul that I had been born a boy. Horatio Alger was the greatest writer in the world. His heroes were always good, always won, and were always boys. I could have developed the first two virtues, but becoming a boy was sure to be difficult, if not impossible.”
― Maya Angelou, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings

“a big man, who was himself protected by the shield of a bad reputation”
― Maya Angelou, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings