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Not every smile stems from happiness; many serve a deeper purpose. In some cases, a smile can be a means of survival. Maya Angelou understood this profoundly. “If you don’t understand Black culture, you might think she’s laughing, but in reality, she’s not,” Maya recalled about a maid she once saw on a New York City bus. This woman's smile inspired Maya to write one of her most famous works. “She would simply part her lips and make a sound—ha, ha, ha, ha.” What made this maid’s smile so remarkable? She carried two shopping bags, and whenever the bus came to a sudden stop, she smiled, when the bus slowed to a gentle halt, she smiled again. At that moment, Maya realized that her laughter was a survival mechanism. Maya once imitated the woman’s hollow laugh on camera, her lips stiffly ...

“I Want to Be a Writer So My Brother Can Come Home Alive.” Jesmyn Ward A Place Where Black People Can Only “Sleep, Wake Up, Struggle, and Survive” American author Jesmyn Ward was born into poverty in DeLisle, Mississippi, in the southern United States. What kind of place is DeLisle? Jesmyn describes it as a place where Black people in the South “endured catastrophe and enslavement”, where they “organized under the threat of terrorism and lynching to gain the right to vote”, and where people can only “sleep, wake up, struggle, and survive.” From 1877 to 1950, there were 654 cases of racially motivated lynchings in that area. Jesmyn was the only Black person from her community to leave and receive a higher education in a big city. My Family History Is Littered with the Cor...