In memoriam

Alison Laurie.

Photograph courtesy of Gareth Watkins

Alison Laurie, 20.04.1941 - 16.08.2024

Alison was a writer, broadcaster, linguist, activist, oral historian, feminist, academic, animal-lover, amongst other achievements and interests, but above all, a proud lesbian. She is an important figure in the development of the unique lesbian and feminist knowledge and communities of Aotearoa/New Zealand. Read Julia Glamuzina's full obituary which describes her contribution to lesbian, women's and gay rights and more.

A memorial gathering to remember the life and work of Alison Laurie will be held in Wellington at 2pm on Sunday 13 October at The Pines, 50 The Esplanade, Houghton Bay. The memorial will be live streamed at vimeo.com/1010038729/c5a7442ac2 and will available afterwards as a recording.

LILAC has copies of several books Alison (co)wrote or contributed to. Her PhD thesis Lady-Husbands and Kamp Ladies is available online.

Renée, 19.06.1929 - 11.12.2023

Renée - Photo: Doug Lily

The self-described "lesbian feminist with socialist working-class ideals", author and playwright died aged 94. Read The Post's obituary for Renée, and the tribute to Renée on the Spinnoff. The RNZ obituary has links to four interviews with her from 2017, 2021 and 2022. Her funeral can be streamed here (ca. 2 hours)
LILAC has copies of her plays, novels and other works.
There are links to interviews with Renée, a lecture and her blog Wednesday Busk on the web links page.

Porleen Simmonds, 20.03.1948 - 28.09.2014

Porleen Simmonds.

Long-time Wellington lesbian activist Porleen Simmonds died suddenly on 28 September 2014. Her funeral was attended by lesbians from the Wellington region and beyond who remembered her vigorous, courageous and sometimes cheeky work as a lesbian feminist from the 1970s. Video of her funeral can be viewed at vimeo.

Porleen was a foundation member of the LILAC collective - and it is poignant that she died when we were celebrating LILAC's 20th anniversary. She was one of the founders of Sisters for Homophile Equality (SHE) in 1973, the Amazons softball team, and the lesbian-feminist magazine Circle - which she printed at Herstory Press where she worked as a printer. Porleen was one of the four founders and owners of Club 41, Wellington's first lesbian club. In the early 1980s she and Pleasance set up the Women’s Place bookshop on upper Cuba Street. Porleen was on the Gay Task Force that campaigned for Homosexual Law Reform in the 1980s, and went on to fight for human rights protection.

Patricia Jean Rosier, 21.01.1942 - 12.06.2014

Pat Rosier.

Paekakariki writer, feminist and lesbian Pat Rosier was deeply mourned after dying suddenly at home from a heart attack on 12th June. Her funeral on 18th June was attended by a big crowd from around the country and overseas who mourned her passing and celebrated her life. Video of the funeral is available on vimeo.

The final few entries on Pat's blog posts now make poignant reading.
Read Alison M's blog article about Pat for an overview of her life.

Pat was a long-time supporter of LILAC, including being an active collective member for a number of years, anchoring the book club and teaching creative writing.

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