Famous American writer from South Carolina, Dorothy Allison has passed away. She died following a courageous battle with an illness. She was announced dead in a social media statement that read “A great tree has fallen. Thank you, Dorothy Allison, you sexy, angry genius. Thank you for giving us language for experiences that had never been written before—and for being so brave and so femme.”
Who was Dorothy Allison?
American author Dorothy Allison was born in South Carolina and wrote on feminism, lesbianism, sexual assault, child maltreatment, and class conflict. She considers herself to be a lesbian femme. For her work, Allison has received numerous honours, including multiple Lambda Literary Awards. Allison was chosen to join the Fellowship of Southern Writers in 2014.
Ruth Gibson Allison, at 15 years old, gave birth to Dorothy E. Allison in Greenville, South Carolina, on April 11, 1949. When she was a baby, her father passed away. Her single mother, who worked as a chef and waiter, was impoverished. Ruth eventually got married, but her stepfather started sexually abusing Dorothy when she was five years old. For seven years, this abuse persisted. Allison’s mother was informed about it by a relative when she was twelve years old.
The family stayed together after Ruth had her husband leave the girl alone. The period of respite was short-lived, as the stepfather continued to sexually assault for five years. Allison experienced physical and mental suffering, and it wasn’t until she was in her 20s that she was diagnosed with and treated gonorrhea. She was unable to conceive because of the untreated illness. Allison and her family relocated to Central Florida when she was around eleven years old. In school, Allison was able to escape her family life. She claims that in her early adolescence, she realized she was a lesbian.
