Which Maya Angelou autobiography was banned for its depiction of childhood sexual abuse?

The Maya Angelou autobiography banned or challenged for depicting childhood sexual abuse is I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings. Published in 1969, it recounts Angelou’s childhood in Arkansas and California, including racism, poverty, family relationships, sexual violence, and the gradual recovery of her voice and confidence.

The book’s title comes from “Sympathy,” a poem by Paul Laurence Dunbar, whose caged bird symbolizes a person constrained by oppression but still capable of expressing a desire for freedom. Angelou’s memoir was widely praised for its literary power and became a major text in American classrooms, especially in studies of African American history and literature.

It has also been repeatedly challenged because of its descriptions of rape, sexuality, profanity, racism, and religious themes. The sexual assault in the memoir occurs when Angelou is eight years old, and the passage has been central to debates over age-appropriateness. The book is the first volume in Angelou’s series of autobiographies; later volumes continue her story but do not replace Caged Bird as the best-known title associated with her childhood.