Airwaves & Liberty

I knew Don White primarily in his capacity as a member of the Pacifica National Board, and I was always struck by how up-front and genuine he was. In Board activities, he had a knack for disagreeing without being disagreeable. In conversations, he was charming and kind. It was several months later that I learned about Don’s other activism and his connections with progressive and radical movements throughout the hemisphere. He was a great guy, and his passing is a sad loss to us.

~Nathan

It is with great sadness that we mourn the passing of a wonderful member of the KPFK and Pacifica Family. Always cheerful, and incredibly generous, Don White will be sorely missed. We will be presenting special tributes to Don on the Air, check the [ Programming Highlights ] for the latest details.

DON WHITE died on about June 20th, 2008, apparently of a heart attack.

The Paul Robeson Community Center Honored Don White in 2004 and this obituary is drawn from the bio we put together then. Don will be sorely missed!

Born in Anacortes, Washington, his life was a reflection of the last 60 years of the progressive movement in the United States. 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.

As a dynamic speaker, he was a fixture of the left, often serving as Master of Ceremonies or moderator at events sponsored by a wide range of progressive 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.

Don came to Los Angeles in 1963 and taught history at Irving Junior High School there. As a charter and lifetime member of United Teachers of Los Angeles, he was deeply committed to issues of equity in educational opportunity, especially for children in the inner cities. Don participated in every teachers’ union strike from 1963 until his retirement in 1997.

In 1976, Don traveled to Guatemala in response to the devastating earthquake. He called that month-long journey “an epiphany, a life changing experience” which remained a vibrant part of his political psyche and which resulted in his friendship and faithful service to Central America. During the war in El Salvador, Don made 14 trips to that country and to Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua. Don was a member of the Echo Park Chapter of the Committee in Solidarity with the people of El 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, fundraisers, teach-in’s, delegations, material aid drives, congressional visits, civil disobedience actions demanding an end to U.S. intervention in El Salvador and Central America to Central America.

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. 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 WTO protests in Seattle and similar actions around the U.S. He served on the Boards of the Coalition in Solidarity with the people of El Salvador, the Office of the Americas and Americans for Democratic Action, as well as the Local Station Board of Los Angeles community radio station KPFK, 90.7 fm and Pacifica Radio’s National Board, among others. He was also a lead organizer and coordinator in the recent historic mass demonstrations for peace and pro-immigrant solidarity rallies in Los Angeles.