Washington, DC – Today, Congresswoman Terri A. Sewell released the following statement in response to the passing of memoirist and poet, Maya Angelou:

“Today, we lost one of the most renowned and inspirational voices of our time. Through her work, Dr. Maya Angelou recorded and celebrated the tragedies and triumphs of the African American experience and provided a voice to women across the world suffering from sexual abuse and discrimination. From overcoming poverty and first-hand racial segregation in the Jim Crow South during her youth to becoming one of our country’s most cherished poets, Dr. Angelou has inspired generations to overcome the confines of their circumstances.                                       

Although Dr. Angelou has left us, her words will continue to be a guide, empowering and comforting us during times of grief and success. Today, as we continue to fight modern-day barriers to voting rights and efforts to strip women of the ability to make personal choices, I am inspired and empowered by the eloquent words Dr. Angelou spoke at the inauguration of President Bill Clinton in January 1993:

“History, despite its wrenching pain,

Cannot be unlived, and if faced

With courage, need not be lived again”

Through our grief, may we draw strength from the resolute power of Dr. Angelou’s words and live out her mission to “notmerely survive, but to thrive; and to do so with some passion, some compassion, some humor, and some style.”

###