In Celebration of Maya Angelou

Today we celebrate the memory of Maya Angelou. Her life showed us the power of words and their ability to inspire:  “The need for change bulldozed a road down the center of my mind.” (I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings) 

In The Giver, Jonas says, “There’s nothing. There’s nothing we can do. It’s always been this way. Before me, before you, before the ones who came before you. Back and back and back.” He considers the overwhelming question:  what can one person do in the face of so much opposition? Emboldened by stories of the past, Jonas ultimately decides to act. He attempts to produce change in his society, like so many have done before him.

Here at Walden Media, we don’t just want to tell stories, we want to bring them to life. The world is always in need of heroes–in reality, as well as on the page and screen. Angelou also understood that the capacity for change is within our grasp:  “I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.”