(compiled by our friends at KPFK)

Don White long time Southern California activist, Charter Founder and lifetime member of United Teachers of Los Angeles passed away suddenly at his home in Los Angles, CA on June 19, 2008. He will be missed by, not only his family, but literally hundreds of friends and associates of the many organizations in which he was so passionately involved over the past three decades.

Born and raised in Mount Vernon, Washington on April 18, 1937, Don White’s life was a reflection of the last 60 years of the progressive movement in the United States. His leadership abilities became evident during his high school years. He was president of his sophomore class and then president of the Mount Vernon High School Student Body. He graduated from the College of the Pacific studying political science and attended post graduate classes at American University in Washington DC.

From the time that he was a college student in the late 1950′s, fighting against the injustice surrounding the House of Representatives’ Un-American Activities Committee, Don remained engaged in the struggle for peace and justice for humanity.

After becoming disenchanted with the political scene in Washington DC, he moved to Los Angeles California in 1963 where he taught history at Irving Junior High School. He was deeply committed to issues of equity in
educational opportunity, especially for children in the inner cities. Don participated in every teacher’s union strike from 1963 until his retirement in 1997.

In 1976, Don traveled to Guatemala to do relief work following a devastating earthquake there. He called that month-long journey “an epiphany, a life changing experience” which remained a vibrant part of his political psyche that resulted in his friendship and faithful service to Central America. During the war in EI Salvador, Don made 14 trips to that country and to Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua. He often traveled to El Salvador to bring direct material aid and on fact-finding missions there, often at risk to his own safety. Don was a member of the Echo Park Chapter of the Committee in Solidarity with the people of EI Salvador, CISPES, since joining the group shortly after its founding convention in 1980.

As an organizer, Board Member and leader of CISPES in Los Angeles, Don coordinated and addressed countless rallies, demonstrations, fund-raisers, teach-in’s, delegations, material aid drives, congressional visits, civil disobedience actions demanding an end to U.S. intervention in EI Salvador and Central America. For years he organized and/or participated in protests demanding closure of the US based School of the Americas, known for training members of the military from Latin American countries in methods of torture.

Don White was an organizer of scores of citywide coalitions addressing numerous progressive causes including peace in the Middle East, the treatment of immigrants, police brutality, women’s rights and more. He played a crucial part in the early sanctuary movement, where local churches gave refuge to undocumented immigrants from Central and Latin America, and up until the time of his death he spoke out about human suffering and separation of families as a result of US government immigration raids in
Southern California and elsewhere.

He was part of the coalition that following a news story broken by the San Jose Mercury newspaper, mobilized against the CIA bringing in crack cocaine to South Los Angeles. And, as a “Legal Observer” working with the National Lawyers Guild, he could be seen wearing the fluorescent Green Hat worn by the NLG Legal Observers at virtually every major – and minor – demonstration in Los Angeles.

Don was a founding member of the Southern California Fair Trade Network, which organized for the 1999 World Trade Organization protests held in Seattle, Washington referred to as “The Battle in Seattle” which has been hailed as ushering in a new era of activism in the United States and internationally. He was one of the lead organizers in protests referred to as “D2K” which were held during the Democratic National Convention in Los Angeles. Several of the D2K protests were the largest Los Angles had seen for some time, and several law suits were filed and won against Los Angeles Police Department for their actions both in the lead up to and during the protests.

He served on the Boards of the Coalition in Solidarity with the people of EI Salvador, the Office of the Americas and Americans for Democratic Action, as well as being the first chair of the Local Station Board of Los Angeles listener-sponsored radio station KPFK, 90.7 fm. He also served several terms on Pacifica Radio’s National Board. He was a key supporter of the Pacifica Foundation and KPFK, and was involved in a lengthy community led struggle to democratize the Foundation and the station. Don volunteered during KPFK fund
drives, most recently several days before his death, and he helped to bring new talent to the station.

Don White was also a lead organizer and coordinator in countless mass demonstrations for peace and pro-immigrant rallies in Los Angeles. He helped organize the 3-day LA Social Forum to be held the weekend of June 27th, 2008. He was active in the Ad Hoc Working Group on Haiti where he was a constant presence at the weekly vigils calling for the safe return of Haitian Human Rights Activist Lovinsky Pierre Antoine. He stood with anti-war veterans as well as anti-war active duty soldiers. He firmly supported and helped to fundraise for Augustine Aguayo for Iraq Veterans Against the War and for the team that produced the film Arlington West. And at the time of his death he was organizing among other activities, for the visit to Los Angeles of Mauricio Funes, the FMNL candidate for President of El Salvador.

As a dynamic speaker, he was a fixture of the progressive movement, often serving as Master of Ceremonies or moderator at events sponsored by a widerange of organizations and coalitions. He was regularly the guy who made the pitch for money at demonstrations as well as social and political events — because he put people at ease, could make them laugh, and made them want to give and be a part of something much larger than themselves. As a result, Don raised hundreds of thousands of dollars for scores of progressive and humanitarian organizations.

For his 70th birthday, a birthday party invitation went out from actor and activist Martin Sheen, and the party was not only a celebration but also a fundraiser for the local peace movement.

Don leaves behind, his brother Dennis and sister-in-law Harriet White, their children Denise Smith and Lori White, their grandchildren Haley Smith, Rachel LaCasse and Campbell, sister-in-law Lucrecia (Bobbi) Way, nephews George and Gary Way and their families and many friends in the Pacific Northwest, in California, across the US as well as in El Salvador. In the style of the activist community to whom Don was so committed, a meeting of friends, family and community based organizations has been organized to plan his public memorial. Several on-air tributes have been paid to Don White on Pacifica Radio’s KPFK.

Contributors to this biography include: Jan Goodman; Blase and Theresa Bonpane; Dennis White; Lydia Brazon and Margaret Prescod.

On this day, some of us in Washington DC sat down and shared a picnic with Don White.  We ate a few snacks,  lit a candle, and told stories about Don.  We brought a picture of him eating corn on the cob.

we still miss you Don.

click here to see a quicktime version of “Compañero” the movie

and contact Peter and Sally here if you want to purchase a copy

also, here’s an article that was in la opinion about the memorial

Don Blanco Presente, hasta la victoria!

-burke

http://dianelent.com/donwhite.htm

They’re down at the bottom of the page. They were taken in El Salvador in 1994 or 1995. The first one is Don and Jill Dowling, about to make a big omelet. The second one I believe was taken at an FPL congress. Don is displaying a newspaper article about the GAP campaign.

Regards,

Zeno Wood

I went through my emails the other day and pulled out some of my favorite Don White subject lines.  Other than removing a name or two, these are cut and pasted directly from Don’s emails. I hope we can collect a series of his writings (emails and written notes alike, as Don loved to send postcards and letters even when most people have lost that art) because his writing truly is inspired, hilarious, and uplifting.  Which is to say that this list is simply a taste of the brilliance that is Don White…
•    Ohmygawd! That was the important thing I was going to write about!!!!!!!
•    THANKS FOR HAPPY BIRTHDAY CALL!  INCREDIBLE!
•    OOoops! my face is red..
•    BIRTHDAY CARD OVERWHELMED ME!  I WAS SO MOVED!
•    CONFIDENTIAL from don white
•    EEEkk!!!!! And I once recommended this website!!
•    OHMYGAWD… the minute I sat down I find it here!!!!!
•    MYSTERY SOLVED!!!
•    BIG, BIG, BIG CORRECTION!! DEMO IS APRIL 6th!!!! you weren’t on the address on THIS EITHER…don’t know what happened!?!
•    you might have been left off this one too!! Yipes
•    This is NOT a joke!!!
•    oh s_ _t!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! e-mail & amendment problem
•    ~~Birthday Update!!!!~~
•    ~~~~ HERE IN LOS ANGELES WE ARE APOLOGIZING !
•    OHMYGAWD! great.. and so QUICKLY!  iT LOOKS TERRIFIC!
•    : – )    maybe he overreacted a tiny bit… NO problems here
•    SACA IN L.A. ON SATURDAY… NO BIENVENIDO AQUI!
•    A heartfelt and sincere APPRECIATION from CISPES-L.A

Recortes del poema Hermana, Mujer de Fé por la poeta y teóloga Guatemalteca: Julia Esquivel “The Certainty of Spring. Poems by a Guatemalan in Exile” En un momento de reflexión éste poema me recordó a Don Blanco.

—

Pienso en los indios……………………. I think of the indians

sacados a sangre y fuego de Manhattan, …………………..driven from Manhattan with blood and fire

y mi corazón estrujado…………………… and my heart

por el dolor, ………………….crushed with sorrow

intenta detener con otros…………… along with other hearts in solidarity

corazones solidarios, ………………….struggles to turn back

las garras del capital …………………..the claws of Capital

sobre Santiago Atitlán, ……………………poised over Santiago Atitlán

Panajachel, ……………………….Panajachel

Izabal, ……………….Izabal,

el valle del Polochic, …………………….the Polochic valley,

Sayaxché……………………. Sayaxché

Parraxtut, …………………..Parraxtut,

Petanac,…………………… Petanac,

el valle del Cauca…………………. the valley of the Cauca…

Más adelante, …………………..Further on,

José Martí ………………………José Martí

me sale al paso: …………………greets me in passing:

“La Patria es ara, no pedestal”……………………. “Homeland is an altar, not a pedestal”

Patria… ………………….Homeland…

–no la de los generales– ……………..–not of the generals–

es la sangre de los indios …………………..it is the blood of the indians

cuyo clamor me sacude las entrañas…………………… whose cry clutches at my gut

desde los cimientos del Empire State Building, ……………..from the foundation blocks of the Empire State,

Patria son los antepasados…………………… Homeland is the ancestors

de la población negra ……………………of the black people

cazados vivos …………………..hunted alive

por los abuelos de George Washington ……………………by the gradfathers of George Washington

y de Abraham Lincoln. …………………and Abraham Lincoln.

Patria son los 30,000 indios ……………………Homeland is the 30,000 Indians

que en El Salvador ………………..in El Salvador

muriéron masacrados en 1932 ……………………who died massacred, in 1932

bajo el OK de la Casa Blanca. …………………with the OK of the White House.

—–

I can’t imagine marching down a street without Don White voicing his opposition. I even see him working as a radio host for a spanish speaking station with that passionate voice that was easily recognizable…perhaps for Radio Amor or la Radio de la UCA. My heart is crushed with sorrow and yet I feel contenta. Gracias por tu acompañamiento con el pueblo salvadoreño querido Don Blanco. Te esperamos en las calles de San Salvador.

¡Compañero, educador, organizador, luchador desde muchos frentes…nos vemos bajo un árbol de Amatepec!

Un gran abrazo,

María Vides

New York City. July 2008.

Lucretia (Bobbie) Way

His death coincided with the arrival of our fact-finding delegation to El Salvador, and consequently with me being the main person holding down the CISPES national office for over a week. Naturally, I was faced with a dilemma: shocking and devastating news like this required a lot of energy throughout the week, and my urge was to drop everything else and pour my all into trying to pass on the news by phone to as many people as possible, coordinating a public response and communicate with all the necessary people, find ways for us to grieve and remember Don as a community and as a widespread movement, all the while still trying to make sense of this sudden shift in the universe. A world without Don White? Imposible! No puede ser, no lo puedo imaginar.

But the dilemma I faced was this: while I wanted to drop everything, I could just hear Don’s unwavering voice telling me “My dear Compañero, while I certainly don’t want to come across as ungrateful, might I remind you that there is still WORK to be done! La Lucha Continua!” There was still a delegation to be supported, still updates about El Salvador to get out, still a budget to be tracked, still donations to process, still reports to be edited, lots to do. There is always more work to be done than we have time to do, and so in the midst of such a hectic week I found myself reflecting on how since I met him, I knew Don to schedule early morning phone meetings at 7am from his home, knowing that he also most likely had meetings in LA scheduled late into the night. I just don’t know how he did it all, with such grace and continual youthful energy.

My contact with Don since we met in 2002 was mostly limited to CISPES-related activities like national gatherings, fundraising trips to LA back in 2002-2003, phone calls, his visits to the CISPES national office whenever he came through town (both in new york and most recently Washington DC), and the wonderful hand-written packages we would receive here in the office, sometimes of newspaper articles clipped out and highlighted, sometimes a sample flyer of a successful protest or event, sometimes a thank you card. Even when he wrote, Don’s enthusiasm was nearly-audible through his use of exclamation points and CAPITAL LETTERS FOR EMPHASIS!!!!

One of my favorite cards we received from Don earlier this year was a hand-written request to meet up with us on his visit to DC. It said something like: “Dear Compañer@s at the CISPES National Office! I will be in Washington DC and would be delighted to come by the office to see you. How about March 15th at 1:00PM?” Of course we all wrote it down in our planners immediately, joking about how we are so used to immediate responses through email and phone calls and how such a formal-sounding request from Don made his visit feel extra special. Who writes hand-written requests to hang out with a time and date specified like that anymore? It was just another example of how Don always put personal attention toward everyone he approached.

We had a memorial for Don last Tuesday here in Washington DC at St. Stephen’s Church, an impromptu vigil that brought out about 30 people. I was honored to meet Julie Meyer’s mother at that event (I’m blanking on her name at the moment…) She told a great story of how she met Don in 1980 or 81 when he came knocking at her door on a canvas in her neighborhood of Echo Park, CA. Many years passed before she saw Don again, until Arnoldo Ramos convinced her to volunteer with CISPES. At that point, she says she couldn’t go anywhere without seeing him at rallies, legal observing with his green cap on at protests, speaking at events, hearing his voice on the radio.

What touched me the most about her story was when she said that Don was good at the big things and the little things. He had such a clear vision of broad political analysis, was able to frame the many struggles for social justice in a historical and relative context, maintaining the overall objective of challenging US imperialism at the forefront of his work. Yet he was also so personable, and put just as much attention toward maintaining an individual connection with people through his genuine interest and incredible ability to make each of us feel special and important. The big and the little. What a good example.

In putting together information about Don last week, I came across these saludos for his birthday celebration last year. I figured I would end this entry with them, because they certainly still ring true.

“I first met Don White in early 2002, upon my first trip to Los Angeles as the new bright-eyed bushy-tailed west coast fundraiser for CISPES. Don welcomed me to the CISPES office and took me out to lunch that afternoon, and within the first hour of chatting with him I knew I was going to learn a lot from this guy about movement history, how to rile people up during a passionate pitch for support using an incredible combination of political rationales and sarcastic humor, and also how to rock the coolest sunglasses around. I still have yet to come close to pulling off the sunglasses as well as Don does, but I carry with me countless stories about the current and historic struggles of the people of El Salvador, of what accountable and effective solidarity from the US can look like, and how to get a room full of people so excited that they just can’t wait to dig deep in their pockets and contribute as much as they can to a vibrant solidarity movement.

Don, thank you for your leadership, your compassion, and your infectious chuckle. I look forward to organizing with you for many years to come. ~ Sha Grogan-Brown, CISPES Development Director”

“Everyone who meets Don comes away with a story about him, and even more importantly, with a story about social justice organizing… We are honored to count Don among the eternal ranks of CISPES as a friend, compañero de lucha, mentor, ally, leader, and all around revolutionary figurehead of solidarity. ~ CISPES National Office”

Como dijo Manuel, Don White no se ha muerto–vive en nosotr@s. And while we will have to remember to channel his jokes, his diplomatic facilitation skills, and his rousing pitches, I know we can do it because his spirit WILL continue organizing with us for many years to come.