Doris "Dotsie" Holmes oral history interview, October 23, 2000

Item — othertype: Oral History

Staff Only

Scope and Contents note

Interviewed by Janet Paulk. The daughter of a grocery store owner, Holmes talks about her childhood and education in New Orleans, Louisiana. She describes her mother as “a feminist long before the word became popular.” After marrying and eventually moving to Atlanta, Holmes says that she became aware of sexual discrimination when she and her husband bought a house, and she was informed that “in Georgia the husbands own the houses.” She joined the Atlanta chapter of the League of Women Voters, and through them became involved with the study on the status of women in Georgia. She describes the day to day business of lobbying legislators in efforts to pass the Equal Rights Amendment, and the split over the ERA Georgia Inc. presidential election. She feels that although the Equal Rights Amendment did not pass, that progress has been made, and she cites the professions and sports that are now open to women.

Dates

Creation: October 23, 2000

Creator

Holmes, Dorris, 1924-2010 (Interviewee, Person)

Restriction on Access

Oral history available for research. Please contact Special Collections and Archives about accessing this oral history.

Biographical Note

Dorris [Dotsie] Dutel Holmes was born in New Orleans, Louisiana in 1924. She attended Loyola University with a major in sociology and a minor in history, and worked as a social worker and pre-school teacher. When she and her husband moved to Georgia, Holmes became increasingly interested in community property and the kinds of discrimination women faced in terms of home ownership and equal pay issues. Holmes joined the League of Women Voters, and has served as vice president of the Atlanta chapter, as well as treasurer of the Atlanta chapter of the American Association of University Women. Holmes was a Georgia delegate at the National Women’s Conference in Houston during International Women’s Year (1977), and participated in lobbying efforts for ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment in Georgia. From 1988 to 1996 Holmes was on the DeKalb Library’s Board of Trustees, and from 1997 to 2000, was treasurer of the Chamblee Library Friends association. She continues to be a member of the League of Women Voters and the American Association of University Women.