"There's nothing I don't love about my life. It's a struggle, but that why they call it life." Maya Angelou

Maya Angelou remains a symbol of self-transformation and the power of self definition. She harnessed courage and strength out of the experiences of trauma, pain and suffering. Poetry was not only the creative form she mastered but it was reflected in the quality of her humanity - of overcoming and becoming. She lived the full extent of life, and selflessly contended with much of her experiences to shine before us a light of renewal and healing. Above all, she taught us how to grow through the power of love. We invite you to join us as we honour her gift of love and light. We will draw on her words for this spirited celebration on her 86th birthday.

Come with your favourite pieces (poetry/prose/song), and books to share her legacy of overcoming and experiencing the power of love. Bring your glass (bottle) of your favourite tipple, create a special dish, if you wish using one of her recipes as a way of honouring her memory.

Organised by:

Nicole-Rachelle Moore is a Cultural Educational Consultant and coordinates the GPI's [George Padmore Institute] Events, Outreach and Publicity initiatives. Through the GPI the public can access a wide-ranging archive of rare publications relating principally to the experience of the Black community nationally and internationally from the 1960s onwards. Nicole also works with the pioneering publishers New Beacon Books and regularly consults on a range of cultural and educational issues at schools, colleges and other institutions. More recently she has served as the Co-Course Leader on the Toni Morrison and Andrea Levy Courses. In 2018 Nicole contributed as Co-Editor on Dream to Change World: The Book of the Exhibition on the life and legacy of John La Rose. She is the Founder and Co-Facilitator of Education Through Culture (ETC). Caribbean Studies and Post-Colonial Cultures are her areas of research interest.

Dr Michelle Yaa Asantewa is a writer, editor and independent scholar and facilitates a variety of workshops that are academic, creative, spiritual and cultural. Her publications include Elijah, Something Buried in the Yard, The Awakening collection of poems, a book on African derived spiritual practice: Guyanese Komfa: the ritual art of Trance and Mama Lou Tales: a folkloric biography of a Guyanese Elder were published by Way Wive Wordz Publishing, Editing and Tuition Services, which she founded in 2014. She is the Co-Course Leader on the Amazing James Baldwin, Toni Morrison and Andrea Levy Courses and writes a regular blog at waywivewordzspiritualcreative which combines spiritual, social, cultural and artistic expression. Dr Asantewa is the Editor of In Search of Mami Wata: Narratives and Images of African Water Spirits, which will be published in 2020.