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Dorothy Barnes Pelote (December 30, 1929 – January 18, 2015) was a member of the Georgia State House of Representatives.

Early background

Born on December 30, 1929, in Lancaster, South Carolina, the daughter of Abraham Barnes and Ethel Green, she married Maceo R. Pelote by whom she had two daughters, Deborah and Miriam. Before entering politics, Barnes Pelote, who has African-American heritage and is African Methodist Episcopalian, was a school teacher.

Political career

A Democrat, she then served as Chatham County Commissioner. In 1992, she was elected to the Georgia House of Representatives for a two-year term and was re-elected four times. She represented the Savannah-based 149th Representative District.

Dorothy Barnes Pelote was noted for her efforts to promote public awareness of the dangers of ovarian cancer, as well as for proposing more unusual legislative proposals. She introduced a bill that would make it a crime for anyone to answer the door naked.

"Former Savannah Georgia, legislator Dorothy Pelote became a fierce advocate for black Florida and Georgia residents whose communities were visited by swarms of disease-carrying mosquitoes released by the CIA during the 1950s and 1960s. CIA documents suggest that scientists in the MK-ULTRA Project experimented with such biological exposures in black communities in order to determine whether such releases would be effective against foreign enemies."

Death

She died on January 18, 2015, surrounded by her family at her Savannah, Georgia home, aged 85. A widow, she was survived by her two daughters and extended family.

Honors

In 2006, the Georgia Legislature passed a resolution to designate the Dorothy Barnes Pelote Bridge to honor her.

Carver Heights (Savannah, GA) Community Service Award, 1981–82; Rep Roy Allen Award, 1982; Minority Women of the Year, Zeta Phi Beta, 1984; Dorothy Pelote Day City Savannah & Chatham County, 1985.

Special Achievements: First Female elected County Commissioner Chairman Pro Tem; one of the first Black females to be elected to the Chatham County Commission; State Board Postsecondary Vocational Educator by appointment of the Governor GA selected Vice President Black Caucus Asn County Commission GA; Testimonial Banquet by Constituents of Eighth Comn District

Footnotes

1. Charles S. Bullock, III, The Georgia Political Almanac, The General Assembly 1993–94
2. Representative Dorothy Pelote (D-149), Georgia House of Representatives
3. Dave Williams, "Knock, knock. Who's there? No nakedness" Archived January 11, 2004, at the Wayback Machine, onlineathens.com, January 15, 2002.
4. Michael Wall, 2002 Golden Sleaze Awards Archived September 30, 2007, at the Wayback Machine, creativeloafing.com, April 17, 2002.
5. Medical Apartheid, by Harriet A. Washington, 2006.
6. Dorothy Barnes Pelote obituary, meaningfulfunerals.net; accessed April 16, 2016.
7. House Resolution 1195 – Designate Dorothy Barnes Pelote Bridge; Chatham County Archived June 3, 2010, at the Wayback Machine, Georgia General Assembly, February 2, 2006.

See also

• Georgia General Assembly
• Georgia State House of Representatives
• Savannah, Georgia

• 1929 births
• 2015 deaths
• African-American Methodists
• Methodists from Georgia (U.S. state)
• African-American state legislators in Georgia (U.S. state)
• 20th-century African-American women politicians
• 20th-century African-American politicians
• 20th-century American women politicians
• County commissioners in Georgia (U.S. state)
• Democratic Party members of the Georgia House of Representatives
• People from Lancaster, South Carolina
• Politicians from Savannah, Georgia
• Women state legislators in Georgia (U.S. state)
• 20th-century Methodists
• 20th-century members of the Georgia General Assembly