The poem "Still I Rise" by Maya Angelou describes rising above oppression and adversity. It states that though the speaker may be written down in history with lies, tread in the dirt, killed with hatefulness, or weakened by cries, like dust and air they will still rise. The speaker declares that they will rise up from a painful past and a history of shame, as a black ocean leaping and wide, bringing the gifts of their ancestors and being the dream and hope of slaves.