Doris Davenport (poet)


Doris Davenport, sometimes styled as doris davenport, is a writer, educator, and literary and performance poet. She wrote an essay featured in Borderlands/La Frontera: The New Mestiza, titled The Pathology of Racism: A Conversation with Third World Wimmin. She also focuses her efforts on poetry and education.
Davenport identifies as African American, Appalachian, Feminist, and LGBTQ, which all heavily influence her writings. Today, she holds many workshops and poetry performances.

Early life and education

Davenport was born in Gainesville, Florida and raised in Cornelia, Georgia. She often mentions her life growing up in the Appalachian foothills and has written many poems published in the Appalachian Heritage. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in English from Paine College. She earned a Mater of Arts in English from the University at Buffalo. Her Doctorate of Philosophy in Literature was obtained from the University of Southern California.

Themes in Writing

Feminism

In her most renowned essay The Pathology of Racism: A Conversation with Third World Wimmin mentioned in This Bridge Called My Back: Writings by Radical Women of Color she speaks heavily of the differences between the races regarding feminism. Davenport considers the privilege white women still have in forms of activism that impact the feminist community as a whole and challenges the perception of black women. These writings focus on the institutionalized privilege that white women inherently have and discusses how feminism between the races cannot be equated.

Sexuality

One of her influences as a writer is through her identity. As a self-identified lesbian, Davenport incorporates anecdotes from her life that revolve around her relationships with women. She also writes of the marginalization she faces by being a part of the LGBTQ and African American community. Her self-published collection of poems it's like this are one of eight works that mentions a variety of personal accounts told through poetry and prose. These show both the wonderful aspects of her identity through love and friendship, but also the difficulties of being in an oppressed community.

Culture

Davenport speaks often of her heritage and in many of her works, she expresses the pride and pain that comes along with being African American. Her themes follow slavery, the effects of modern feminism on her community, and the personal hardships she's faced through her lifetime. In her self-published work it's like this she makes a social commentary of black men and women's place in society. Growing up in the south, Davenport heavily incorporates her upbringing to reflect her childhood. Many of her works express her life living in the Appalachian Foothills as she has close ties to the area.

Career

Today, Davenport is a self-employed performance poet but has experience in being an educator. She taught at Albany State University and Stillman College in the English department. To date, she has published eight books of poetry and continues to give performances at colleges. She currently resides in Cleveland, Georgia.

Works

Poetry collections