WASHINGTON: Celebrated African-American author, poet and civil rights activist Maya Angelou died early on Wednesday, her family said. She was 86.

Angelou is best known for memoirs that focused on her childhood and early adulthood, including “I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings” — the first non-fiction best-seller by an African-American woman.

A friend of slain civil rights hero Martin Luther King, she was widely respected in the United States and abroad as a strong voice for both black people and women.

Her son Guy Johnson said his mother “passed quietly in her home” in Winston-Salem, North Carolina and expressed thanks that “her ascension was not belaboured by a loss of acuity or comprehension”. “She lived a life as a teacher, activist, artist and human being. She was a warrior for equality, tolerance and peace,” he said in a statement.

“The family is extremely appreciative of the time we had with her and we know that she is looking down upon us with love,” he said.

She had reportedly been in poor health recently, and cancelled a scheduled appearance in Texas later this week where she was to accept an honour.

Listen to yourself’: “Listen to yourself and in that quietude you might hear the voice of God, “she wrote in what would become her last message on her Twitter account, posted on May 23.

Born Marguerite Annie Johnson on April 4, 1928, in Saint Louis, Missouri, Angelou experienced hardship from an early age — her parents’ breakup, racial segregation and, at the age of seven or eight, rape at the hands of her mother’s boyfriend.—AFP

Published in Dawn, May 29th, 2014