Don White (1937-2008): Honoring His Memory, Honoring His Work
Don White, well known and beloved by many for his longtime commitment to peace and justice,
passed away the weekend of June 21.
From his student days protesting the House Un-American
Activities Committee to his more recent work fighting for justice in El Salvador, Don was
active in movements for peace and justice around the world, including
Central American solidarity, labor, immigrant rights, education, and more.
In holding records of these movements, the Library holds the memory of Don and
other veterans in the struggle for justice. We offer below some highlights from our collections on
issues that Don was involved in and cared about so deeply.
Government Repression
As the government moved to silence voices of dissent during the 1950s McCarthy era, Don actively fought
against the repression waged by the House Un-American Activities Committee. The Library holds records of the
Citizens
Committee to Preserve American Freedoms Records, which includes material from
organizations that opposed the House Un-American Activities Committee or worked on other civil liberties issues.
We also have the
Frank Wilkinson
Papers, which tell the story of Frank Wilkinson, another veteran in the battle for our civil liberties and First Amendment
freedoms.
Don often served as a "Legal Observer," working with the National Lawyers Guild, wearing his fluorescent green hat at demonstrations.
The Library holds papers from the National Lawyers Guild, including legal briefs, meeting information, and publications
that shed light on the Guild's work to maintain and protect our civil rights and liberties in the face of persistent attacks upon them.
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A Life of Commitment to Justice
As a college student in the late 50s, Don White was active
against the repression by the House Un-American Activities Committee
(HUAC). After moving to L.A., he taught history and was a charter and lifetime member of UTLA, the United Teachers
of Los Angeles. Don joined the board of the Committee in Solidarity with the People of El
Salvador or CISPES, and remained a leader in CISPES-LA.
In addition, Don was an organizer of scores of city-wide coalitions
addressing various other progressive causes including peace in the Middle
East and the treatment of immigrants. He often worked as a legal
observer working with the National Lawyers Guild and was also a founding member of the Southern California Fair Trade
Network. Most recently he was involved in organizing the historic
immigrants' rights marches in L.A. He was also the chair of the KPFK Local Station Board.
Read more on the Uprising website
Read the obituary
from the L.A. Times
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Teachers Unions and Rights
Don moved to L.A. in 1963 and taught history at Irving Junior High School. He was a charter and lifetime member of
UTLA, the United Teachers of Los Angeles, and participated in every teachers' union strike from 1963 until his
retirement in 1997. The Library's Union Files
collection includes materials on UTLA as well as over 150 unions spanning the decades.
Reflecting Don's battles both against McCarthy era repression and for teachers' rights, we also hold
materials on
Blacklisted Teachers
in Los Angeles, including clippings, oral histories, and other materials,
as well as the Los Angeles Teachers Union Collection, which includes periodicals, clippings, and
subject files, much of it relating to the blacklisting of its members during the McCarthy Era.
CISPES/Central American Solidarity
Don was a voice of solidarity for many decades. He was at the founding convention of the
Committee in Solidarity with the People of El Salvador (CISPES) in
1980, and played a key role in the organization up until the very week of his passing. The Library holds
many boxes of clippings, reports, and other materials on Central American solidarity movements, as well as
the Liberty Hill Foundation Collection, which includes materials on CISPES and other Central American solidarity groups.
Read a blog on Don on the CISPES website.
Photographs of people's fights for justice in El Salvador, Nicaragua, and other countries can be found in
our Frontline Photograph Collection, with photographs from Frontline, a bi-monthly newspaper
that represented the interests and causes of the working class in the struggle against war and racism.
Immigrant Rights
Don was also active in immigrant rights, most recently in organizing the historic immigrants' rights marches in
L.A. The Library holds materials on historic battles for immigrant rights in Los Angeles, including the papers
of the Asociacion de Vendedores Ambulantes (Street Vendors Association) documenting the street
vendors fight to legalize street vending in Los Angeles,
as well as the records of the Latino Community Justice Center Records, which includes
documentation of complaints regarding
misconduct/abuse on the part of police or sheriffs department personnel or on the part of the Immigration and Naturalization Service (I.N.S.).
La Lucha Continua!
Memorial Service
A memorial service is planned:
Where: Immanuel Presbyterian Church, 3300 Wilshire Blvd., Los Angeles
Date: August 10
When: 6 p.m.
A call is going out for photos and/or
video footage the community may have
of Don to assemble into a
short film of him for his memorial. If you have photos or footage, please e-mail Peter and Sally at:
mail@arlingtonwestfilm.com
Share your story about Don
Please feel free to share a story or memory about Don and his work in L.A. social justice movements, or your
involvement in the issues he cared about.
A popular mass in El Salvador: Frontline Photo Collection
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(323) 759-6063 