Alice Walker is most famously known for her novel The Color Purple. She’s written many stories and other novels and has a lifetime rich in literary contributions that have enriched us all. She’s won the Pulitzer Prize, the O’Henry Award, and the LennonOno Grant for Peace award, among many others.
Unfortunately, she’s tarnished her reputation and the value of her contributions by her endorsement of anti-Semitic conspiracy theories. During Black History Month, it is important to realize that icons are human beings with frailties and imperfections. The question of whether an author’s work can stand alone without consideration of the author’s life and beliefs is one that is raised again and again. So many of our authors contribute and then another bent of their personality comes to the fore. So in remembering Alice Walker’s birthday, we can celebrate her positive contributions, and still lament the despicable embrace of (and denial of her own) anti-Semitism.