In Memoriam, Dorothy Allison (Author, Lesbian, Working-class Escapee)

American author, activist, lesbian, teacher, anthropologist, and working-class escapee, Dorothy Allison, died November 6th, 2024. She was 75 years old. In her honor, Arlene Zaucha shared the radio program she produced featuring Allison’s 2013 talk to the newly-formed Working Class Student Union, at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. It originally aired in the program series Her Turn, on local community radio station WORT-FM. Among Dorothy Allison’s published writings are a book of poetry titled “Women Who Hate Me”, a book of short stories titled “Trash”, and the semi-fictional novel “Bastard Out of Carolina”, which became a best-seller and was made into a film directed by Anjelica Huston. Allison talked of her experience of the class divide in America, and the effect it had on her own life and university experiences.

The show was produced by Arlene Zaucha for the radio show Her Turn on WORT-FM, Madison, Wisconsin and adapted for WINGS by Frieda Werden. Music credits: the Her Turn theme is “Switchin’ In” by Junko Onishi from her Cruising album; the KD Lang song is “Tune Into My Wave” from the “Angel with a Lariat” album by KD Lang and the Reclines.

The Women’s International News Gathering Service (WINGS) has been covering the global women’s movement and related issues for community radio since 1986. WINGS may be contacted at: [email protected].

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