A 30-Year-Old Clip Of Maya Angelou Correcting A Teen Has New School Twitter Up In Arms

[Duece]

A video of Maya Angelou checking a teenage girl for calling her by her first name went viral and sparked a Twitter debate Friday about names, age and respect like none other.

In the video, which Newsweek reports is from the early 1990s, Angelou is sitting on stage taking questions from the audience. The host chooses a young girl who begins her question by addressing Angelou as "Maya."


“Oh, thank you,” Angelou replies to the girl in the clip. "And first, I’m Ms. Angelou."

"I’m not Maya, I’m 62 years old," Angelou continues. "I’ve lived so long and tried so hard that a young woman like you, or any other, has no license to come up to me and call me by my first name. That’s first. Also, because at the same time, I’m your mother, I’m your auntie, I’m your teacher, I'm your professor. See?”

The clip was uploaded by Twitter user Prince Pierre (@PrinceCharmingP) on Thursday night who captioned it, "I can’t wait to turn 30 so I can read one of yall for calling me by my first name like this."

 

[RunawaySlave]

Twitter ain't always right. Respect your elders

PS: that goes for the white lady with the mic too

 

[RoomService]

She’s 100% correct

 

[Duece]

Some people are saying it's a southern thing that is left over from slavery, others are want to argue about so-called misplaced honorifics in the Black community and others state that quick but loving correction is what older Black women are known for. I honestly never thought this would be an issue in the Black community.

 

[Mrfreddygoodbud]

Lol I knew my ass was getting old..

When I told this fine young sweet thang..

She smelled very nice..

She looked me right in my eyes unleashed a beautiful smile on par with her beautiful chocolate complexion...
And said ..thank you SIR.....

Lil ho

Lol

 

[Deezz]

She was absolutely right. That's a valuable lesson for that young lady.

The only people up in arms are white Twitter. They disrespect their parents and their elders all the time.

 

[Multi - P Limited]

So white people is attacking another dead celebrity.

To already go after defenseless black children..,. Why not right?

This shit has to stop.

They're already gearing up to attack Martin Luther King in a couple of years...

Smh

 

[tallblacknyc]

Probably depending on what mood I woke up in would determine how I would've responded to " maya" after her lil uppity outburst... My tolerance level for "authority figures" were very low back in the days... I get her but she didn't have to keep on with the lil rant especially she look like a lil innocent girl

 

[daddyfatsacks9000]

It wasn't white people attacking Ms. Angelou on my TL. It was young stupid blk folks, going hard about old heads trying to "strong arm" respect. Some of the shit I read today by younger BLACK people just reinforces how far removed I am from this current generation. Who raised you folks? Just the sheer fact that you're at an event to hear Ms. Angelou speak should garner the respect to address her in a more respectful manner.

 

[fwillia]

I personally call everybody sir/ma’am until I’m directed by them to do otherwise. That said, it does seem somewhat ego-driven to demand to be referred to by a title.

 

[D24OHA]

Ms Angelou apologized a lil later in the show...

Some on Twitter are using this as proof thaf she was wrong and she knew she was wrong....

No she was not wrong for demanding her due respect and title, maybe her approach was (I don't think so, but clearly a lot of Twitter does)

 

[dugington]

When elders in my family had friends over to play cards or whatever, they referred to them by their first names: Harold, Beverly, etc.
I wasn't allowed to do the same. If anything, it was,"Mr. Harold" or "Miss Beverly." And even that's only because I was familiar with them like that.
Shit, I'm old af and STILL put a 'mr.' or 'ms.' on elders' names when face to face.

The young girl should've had enough upbringing to know better in the first place IMO.

 

[The Jamaican]

When elders in my family had friends over to play cards or whatever, they referred to them by their first names: Harold, Beverly, etc.
I wasn't allowed to do the same. If anything, it was,"Mr. Harold" or "Miss Beverly." And even that's only because I was familiar with them like that.
Shit, I'm old af and STILL put a 'mr.' or 'ms.' on elders' names when face to face.

The young girl should've had enough upbringing to know better in the first place IMO.

How old are are you, Sir?

 

[thundercat]

It was a teaching moment. I wouldn't dare address someone that age by their first name unless they insisted I do so. And even when they insist I'll throw a Mr or Ms/Mrs in front of it. Fuck is wrong with people.

 

[LennyNero1972]

She was right to do so, no argument, kids have to learn there is a hierarchy.

 

[The Untouchable GDFOLKS]

She was a bedwench right? Fuck her then!

 

[Amajorfucup]

Society, as a whole, is in trouble.

 

[dasmybikepunk]

I've never liked her, I remember as a kid hating her because she was the actress who played Kunta Kinte grandmother and she was hating on Kunta's new hut, and decided to fuck with him and sent him away to make a fucking drum, the next day and he was captured into slavery while looking for a skin.
African Proverb(not really but really):
Never listen to a woman when you are a man even they are family, they will fuck you up and take your hut.



I always heard most actors have strong ties to their character choices and like our children, the character she spawned did not fall too far from the tree.

 

[Duece]

I was expecting the African proverb to be an actual African proverb but it is still surprisingly true.

 

[dugington]

How old are are you, Sir?

In my 40's. That's all I'll say about it. LOL

 

[dasmybikepunk]

I was expecting the African proverb to be an actual African proverb but it is still surprisingly true.

Yup, I had to put that out there to show context, but it felt like it came from somewhere deep in my dna.

 

[HUNTSVEGAZ]

Society, as a whole, is in trouble.

Man, that's all I see reading these comments

No respect or empathy for anyone or anything

 

[slewdem100]

People on twitter must be living real good lives for this to be considered a problem....she checked the young lady for the disrespect of using the first name then apologized for going a little overboard with the tone...what more do you fucking want?

 

[Drayonis]

New age blacks. They don't respect shit

It wasn't white people attacking Ms. Angelou on my TL. It was young stupid blk folks, going hard about old heads trying to "strong arm" respect. Some of the shit I read today by younger BLACK people just reinforces how far removed I am from this current generation. Who raised you folks? Just the sheer fact that you're at an event to hear Ms. Angelou speak should garner the respect to address her in a more respectful manner.

 

[Maxxam]

The young girls parents had already failed her.

Never in my life have referred to any elder by their first name. That's some shit you're supposed to learn early. Basic respect for your elders. Manners used to matter.

These youngins all in their feelings about this shit have also been failed by their parents.

 

[theoriginalgreatone]

Lol

 

[REDLINE]

She’s right

 

[playahaitian]

I personally call everybody sir/ma’am until I’m directed by them to do otherwise. That said, it does seem somewhat ego-driven to demand to be referred to by a title.

Yeah i agree

But apparently there is more to clip

You would think by now we would know that is ALWAYS the case.

Yes She was extra strong...

But honestly back then if i had did that to any woman that age in my family?

I'd be unconscious.

 

[playahaitian]

People on twitter must be living real good lives for this to be considered a problem....she checked the young lady for the disrespect of using the first name then apologized for going a little overboard with the tone...what more do you fucking want?

/thread

 

[Mask]

Some people are saying it's a southern thing that is left over from slavery, others are want to argue about so-called misplaced honorifics in the Black community and others state that quick but loving correction is what older Black women are known for. I honestly never thought this would be an issue in the Black community.

Many different talking pernts about the situation

 

[Drayonis]

We live in outrage society. Is there anything these young folks aren't outraged about?

They mad over everything under the sun from not supporting Bernie to getting "pronouns" right and everyone is "canceled". Social media is fucking sickening sometimes

 

[SIDESHOW]

Classic clip.

Maya>

 

[playahaitian]

Many different talking pernts about the situation

Twitter mad about this?

It would be interesting if someone like thurgood or dr. King or james baldwin or Muhammad ali said this to a boy...

Would they complain?

What about if they checked a young black girl?

Or a young WHITE girl?

Cause i bet if "maya" checked a WHITE girl...

This wouldn't be the same reaction.

 

[Drayonis]

Twitter mad about this?

It would be interesting if someone like thurgood or dr. King or james baldwin or Muhammad ali said this to a boy...

If those men were alive today they'd be attacked by Black Twitter and entangled in various e-beefs with Tariq Nasheed and the Black Authority....no one is safe

 

[4 Dimensional]

I respect my elders, however some of them doesn’t deserve it one bit.

But Maya was not as liked as I thought she was. She was a professor at Wake Forest University at the time I was attending Winston Salem State.

She talk that black empowerment shit, but ask me how many times she came to Winston Salem State while I was there to give a speech or presentation? NONE! And you know why? Because her asking price was more than the school could afford, yet she only taught 10 minutes away from the school. She knew WSSU was a HBCU.

I’ve had several professors express their disdain for her. I thought that was interesting considering how much she was respected in the Black Community.

That was my first reality check on black scholars not like other black scholars because they thought they were phony.