Art Opening: Paintings by Antionio Guerrero, Speaking: Alice Walker

Join us for an art exhibit opening with original paintings by Antonio Guerrero - one of the Cuban Five Political Prisoners held in the U.S. Keynote speaker, novelist, and poet Alice Walker will also be there reading her prologue to the book Letters of Love and Hope, a compilation of letters between the Cuban Five and their families.

Alice Walker's writings have been translated into more than two dozen languages. A best-selling author, her books have sold more than ten million copies and won the Pulitzer Prize and the American Book Award. Poet, short story writer, novelist, essayist, anthologist, teacher, editor, publisher, feminist and activist, Alice Malsenior Walker was born on February 9, 1944 under the sign of Aquarius in Ward Chapel, a neighboring community of Eatonton, Georgia. In 1994, Walker changed her middle name to Tallulah-Kate, in honor of her mother and paternal grandmother. As a self-described "daughter of the rural peasantry," Walker grew up in a loving household near the end of the Great Depression. While poor, the family was rich in love and perspective. From her parents and siblings Walker learned to value the beauty in nature and in this family her artistic aspirations, which included painting and music along with writing, were nurtured.