Lesbian Herstory Archives AudioVisual Collections

Alix Dobkin video recordings, 1976

Title

Alix Dobkin video recordings, 1976

Description

Alix Dobkin was a celebrated folk musician, composer and feminist activist involved in the women’s liberation movement of the early 1970s; Dobkin spoke up about women’s oppression and male supremacy. After the birth of her daughter and an amicable divorce, aware of the changing times, began listening to countercultural radio shows and worked to become a leading voice, meeting her lifelong partner Liza Cowan along the way. She wrote in her website biography how she initially focused on “a traditional, international, and contemporary/protest repertory, [coming] out as lesbian in 1972 and turned to writing and singing for women … to [build] lesbian culture in particular.” Dobkin found her voice while immersing herself in the Greenwich Village folk scene then moved on to bigger women-centered crowds around the world. In 1973 she released her first record, Lavender Jane Loves Women, with Lavender Jane, arguably the first lesbian album made by and for women. Over the years her influential songs such as “Woman to Woman,” “My Lesbian Wars,” and “Lesbian Code” spoke to crowds of women foregoing their way in the world, preaching to never be ashamed of identifying as lesbian. Dobkin passed away due to a brain aneurysm and stroke; she was surrounded by her family in Woodstock, NY.

References

Alix Dobkin’s Biography. (n.d.). Retrieved November 23, 2021, from https://www.alixdobkin.com/bio/bio.htm

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