In this web exclusive film outtake, Alice Walker talks about how her father loved education and read everything he could find, even though he was only educated through grade 4 or 5 and lived a life of poverty working on a plantation. Walker recalls the day he put her on a segregated bus to go to Spelman College, where she had earned a scholarship.
As soon as Walker boarded the bus she chose a seat at the front, thinking of Rosa Parks’ action in Montgomery. A white woman complained and she was forced to move to the back. It was a poignant moment as she looked at her father through the bus windows. Walker knew what she was up against, and she knew she wouldn’t stand for it.
Alice Walker: Beauty in Truth premieres nationally Friday, February 7 at 9 p.m. on PBS (check local listings).
