No, Maya Angelou was not blind. However, she did experience significant challenges with her eyesight throughout her life, particularly after a childhood accident. At the age of three, she was raped by her mother’s boyfriend, and after she told her brother about the incident, he was murdered. This trauma led Angelou to stop speaking for nearly five years, believing that her voice had caused his death.
During these years of silence, she developed a deep love for literature and the arts, which helped shape her artistic voice later on. It’s important to note that while she faced various challenges, including early experiences that impacted her life profoundly, she did not lose her sight completely. Instead, she used her multifaceted experiences to inspire others through her poetry and writing.