The 'Help' actress remembers growing up in 'abject poverty,' saying she 'sacrificed a childhood for food and grew up in immense shame.'
- Oct 11, 2014
AceShowbiz - Viola Davis opened up about her rough childhood. Speaking at Variety's 2014 Power of Women where she was feted for her humanitarian work, the actress said her passion to fight childhood hunger was fueled by her own experience of growing up in poverty.
"Although my childhood was filled with many happy memories, it was also spent in abject poverty. I was one of the 17 million kids in this country who didn't know where their next meal was coming from," Davis said. "And I did everything to get food."
"I've stolen for food. I jumped in huge garbage bins with maggots for food. I had befriended people in the neighborhood who I knew had mothers who cooked three meals a day for food and I sacrificed a childhood for food and grew up in immense shame."
Other honorees included Jane Fonda who was recognized for her campaign to prevent teen pregnancy, Reese Witherspoon who was honored for her involvement in the educational organization founded by Malala Yousafzai, and Jennifer Lopez who was feted for her work to raise awareness of health care.
