Alice’s champions
Standing on the stage of The Capitol on Bowling Green last night, I scribbled a quote onto my lecture notes: “She wanted to make sure Kentucky was heard.”
The Warren County Public Library was so gracious to invite me to give a lecture about Alice, one of the best Kentuckians of all time, to kick off WCPL’s Black History Month events. I shared an abbreviated timeline of Alice’s very full life, discussed why we forget people who should be put in history books and on pedestals, and explained with what methods Alice’s champions have been remembering her.
Once I finished—closing with what is currently the last page of my manuscript about Alice—Alice’s great-nieces Penny Allison Lockhart and Angela Allison Stephens spoke on behalf of Alice’s family. They stole the show, of course, sharing funny memories and poignant examples of Alice’s impact on their family and beyond.
I was standing a bit off to the side, listening to the sisters, when Angela said that wonderful quote: Alice “wanted to make sure Kentucky was heard.”
I itched to scoot back over to the podium and write that down, knowing it would find its way into my book. Angela also shared that, during her travels, Alice would send her postcards—so even though Angela didn’t go to those places herself, she felt like she had. “You might want to look at them,” she said directly to me. As if there’s any question!
That is perhaps what’s most exciting about my Alice project: Even when I was given a platform—a literal stage—to be an expert on Alice for a little while, I still learned something new, still found a new lead to uncover fascinating facets of this woman.
I hope the audience who spent their Saturday evening with me learned something, too. I was so encouraged by the interest in Alice’s story and by the extraordinarily kind compliments paid to me and my work.
In her 1974 autobiography, reminiscing on her journey from a small classroom in Kentucky to covering Capitol Hill as a journalist, Alice wrote to herself: “You’ve come a long way, sister.”
In one sense, I’ve come a very long way in my work to share Alice’s story and write a book. I’m proud of my progress and excited for the future. But in another way, last night, I was right back where I’ve been before: on the stage of The Capitol, where I attended theatre camp in 2004 and 2005.
