Writing about L.A. Pride, and the history of police-led violence at its origin, brought Don Norman to mind. Don has been one of my favorite people to stumble upon in the last few years. A native Angeleno, a Black native to Echo Park, whose parents were born in LA. Whose great-grandfather was freed on the real first damn Juneteenth. Whose family were part of the first Black migration to Los Angeles. Who lived in the times before, during, and after gay liberation. One of the lucky few men of his gay generation who was afforded the gift old age.
The worst thing that happens is that it only takes a few generations from the experience, from the turning point, from the pivot, for our birdbrain society to minimize, forget, and even welcome our former symbols of harm.
All despite the books, and words and stories begging us to never forget. All despite the people among us who exist as living proof.
Don Norman was living history and this podcast episode from 2018 deserves a place in the Smithsonian archives. Promise me you’ll listen this weekend:
Don sadly passed away in 2020, just two years after the episode was recorded. The following obituary ran in the Los Angeles Blade:
Donald David Norman
On August 20, 2020, Donald “Don” David Norman, beloved community leader and chosen father of many, passed peacefully at the age of 84 at his home in Hollywood, California due to complications with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD).
Don was born on December 11, 1935 in Los Angeles, California to Charles Norman and Lucille Mackey Norman. He was a renowned motivational speaker, LGBTQ, AIDS and civil rights activist, and community leader who helped thousands battle alcohol and drug addiction and thrive in recovery.
Don was known by all as being selfless, quick-witted, and spiritual. Those that knew him can attest he was the essence of joy.
Don’s roots in Los Angeles ran deep. A descendant of Rev. Squire Norman Granville, a man freed from slavery on Juneteenth in Texas who then relocated the Norman family to Los Angeles in 1902.
Don’s talent for advocacy was established early in life. In the 1940s, he helped desegregate the Bimini Baths, the second largest public bathhouse on the West Coast. Intelligent and highly intuitive, he graduated from Belmont Senior High School where he was very active in various student body organizations.
Don briefly served in the United States Air Force where he faced racial and sexual discrimination and was discharged for being a homosexual—a charge that was later pardoned. Don later received a Bachelor’s in Psychology from International College of Los Angeles in 1984.
Even more than the typical youth, Don had a lust for life that took a darker turn when he developed a habit of substance abuse. His struggle with addiction culminated with discovering the Van Ness Recovery House on August 29, 1979—one of the first residential treatment centers serving the LGBT community. On his first day at the Van Ness House, Don read the entire Big Book and was galvanized to change his life. This transformative experience led Don to his life’s calling: to be a guide for thousands on their own path towards recovery.
In Los Angeles, there were not many LGBTQ people or people of color in 12 Step programs at that time. Don quickly became a leader and advocate, ensuring that any person of color and any LGBTQ person felt welcome.
After only years in recovery, Don began touring as a motivational speaker across the country and globe. While he became a household name in recovery circles, he always stayed dedicated to his core groups in Los Angeles. In 1994, when 12 Step programs again did not provide the space for the challenges faced by LGBTQ people, he helped establish a new recovery program in Los Angeles that now has meetings around the globe. Don was the speaker at the first meeting of that fellowship in 1994 and the keynote speaker at its first global conference fourteen years later in 2008.
A worldly man with a talent for languages, Don frequently traveled to Mexico and Thailand with friends. Don was a spiritual seeker who practiced Christianity as well as elements of Hinduism and Buddhism, with a particular affinity for the Holy Mother and Quan Yin. Distinguished in his role as a speaker and spiritual counselor, Don married dozens of friends and family members.
On August 29, 2019, he celebrated 40 years of sobriety at Griffith Park surrounded by hundreds of friends, great music and food, and memories of a happy lifetime.
Don is predeceased by his parents Charles Norman and Lucille Mackey Norman, brother Charles Jr. Norman, sister Lynette Louis, nephew Allin Norman, niece Debra Lopez Baham, Peter Nava (sponsor for over 30 years), many beloved cousins, as well as countless friends and victims of the AIDS epidemic.
Obituary pulled from the Los Angeles Blade (Read here)
