“Booker’s Place: A Mississippi Story,” a critically acclaimed documentary, will be screened at 7 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 11, at UALR’s Stella Boyle Smith Concert Hall. Film critic Roger Ebert called the film a must-see documentary, and Indiewire named it the best documentary this year so far.
John A. Kirk, UALR’s George W. Donaghey professor and chair of history, and David Briscoe, professor of sociology, will join Johnson for a panel discussion following the screening. Both the screening and panel discussion are free and open to the public. Tickets are not required, and seating is a on a first-come, first-served basis. Doors open at 6 p.m. with seating beginning at 6:30 p.m.
The film is the culmination of research that Yvette Johnson, a former student at Arizona State University, began in a Family History Writing class. Booker’s Place” tells the story of Johnson’s grandfather, Booker Wright, who died the year before she was born. He had spoken boldly in a 1966 NBC news program about the treatment of blacks in the South.
For more information, see ‘Must See’ Documentary Set for Oct. 11.
