Talk:Stephen Donaldson (activist)

Pride

The current article credits Donaldson, Brenda Howard, L. Craig Schoonmaker with popularizing the word "Pride" to describe LGBT Pride celebrations. But there is a problem with this claim. The word Pride was already used by the LGBT community in Los Angeles in the years before Stonewall. The first Pride parade (as opposed to a march) was also in Los Angeles. The narrative usually also claims that the trio invented Pride festivals too, but LA had Gay-Ins that are remarkably similar to 21st century Pride festivals as early as 1968, and also directly accompanying the world's 1st pride parade in 1970. Are the Donaldson-Howard-Schoonmaker claims just more of "things become real when they become popular with New Yorkers" or is there actually substance to this?Udibi (talk) 19:05, 12 July 2021 (UTC)

If you have good sources, maybe add something saying "Pride was already used by the LGBT community in Los Angeles in the years before Stonewall"? Do you have any solutions?

JD Rabbit

Does anyone have any information on JD Rabbit or Judith Jones who was Stephen Donaldson/Donny's longterm partner? Or do you have a cached copy of her obituary? http://www.friendsofthecasa.org/NewsArchive04.htm —Preceding unsigned comment added by 96.227.96.247 (talk) 08:39, 26 January 2011 (UTC)

Personal knowledge provided by 43-year close friend, David B. Axelrod. Judith Dickstein, raised in Harrison, NY. Attended University of Massachusetts, Amherst, 1959, graduated 1963. Bilingual, English/Spanish. Claimed to have secretly married (during academic study in Mexico City) Ricardo Valentín Rodríguez de la Vega, Mexican race driver killed in a crash, November 1, 1962. Double major, Spanish/English. Senior College paper: "Realism and Reality in the Writing of Alajandro Casona;" classmate/girlfriend of author Paul Thoreaux; Co-editor of Yahoo, campus humor magazine, with author/ boyfriend, David B. Axelrod; then married (Jones) and lived in Virginia suburb of Washington, D.C. 1965-1967. Legal difficulties researching pornographic literature; legal difficulties distributing LSD; divorced and moved to a farm outside Wheeling, West Virginia; moved to apartment building she (and family) owned in NYC, sw corner of Avenue of Americas and Houston St., where she held forth as a prominant dominatrix. Built a "castle" on a mountain near Montpelier, she eventually owned in Vermont. Battled HIV from 1992 until her death in a single-car rollover/crash, November 20, 2004. In the month before her death, her doctor told her she was close to succumbing. Friends suspected the single car, fatal crash might have been her way of not dying of AIDS. David B. Axelrod— Preceding unsigned comment added by Axelrodthepoet (talk • contribs) 00:42, 12 February 2018 (UTC)

Check out the Internet Archive (Way Back machine) here: http://web.archive.org/web/20080708190700/http://www.friendsofthecasa.org/NewsArchive04.htm — Preceding unsigned comment added by 66.69.117.50 (talk) 00:28, 26 February 2013 (UTC)

Untitled

Ho de hum...

Sammy, please read the NPOV pages. You do good work, but please try to develop a more objective tone. --MB

What are you talking about? The article seemed to be plenty objective to me. --TheCunctator

I think the article has changed substantially from when the NPOV tag was put on it, and it can be removed.--Larrybob 16:37, 27 June 2006 (UTC)

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What do you think I have everyone else for? They are my editors.

J/k maybe ill go back and review it another day and have a fresh perspective.

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Very interesting article, Sammy. --LMS

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Perhaps a silly question: Was this the same "Donny the Punk" who wrote occasionally for Maximumrockandroll in the late 80s, or was that a different guy? -- RjLesch

That was the same guy, indeed. --Diftong 11:23, 2 Nov 2003 (UTC)

I removed the following line which appears to be graffiti.

He is not to be confused with Stephen Donaldson, the author of pro-prison rape novels.

It is likely that he was the one writing in Maximumrockand roll. Although most famous for his actiivity as a prisoner rights activist, he was also something of a celebrity in the punk rock movement, although quite on the old side to be involved.

I'm familiar with Stephen R Donaldson who wrote science fiction but I did not know that it was pro-prison rape. Some of Donny's writing did, in fact, cast the "protective pairing"(the relationship of a "man" and his punk, which would be entered into to avoid being raped. Donny's adoption of the punk nickname referred to both his prison status and his interest in the punk rock movement.

I don't think the science fiction writer Stephen R Donaldson is pro-rape. A (heterosexual non-prison) rape appeared in one of his novels (Lord Foul's Bane), but that doesn't make me conclude he was pro-rape. Espertus (talk) 06:48, 16 March 2008 (UTC)

Have good info for Donny's bio, but have difficulty sourcing it

Hi. I wasn't exactly a friend of Donny myself, but I knew him and also several of his closest friend. He recruited me the Board of Stop Prisoner Rape in 1995. He was quite a charachter. I have some more published material but I can't source it propely. He wrote an op-ed piece for the NYT call "A million punks jockers and ______". I think it is on the spr website along wih his guide to how to be a good jailhouse punk.

In addition to everything else he was, he was an advocate for an open internet. He did an amicus brief for the case that ACLU brought about the internet pornography law. I realize that stuff I know from first hand knowledge that I can't source does not belong in the main wikipedia article. I'm going to do what I can. I've downloaded some articles that I can't properly cite. Perhaps someone who knows the punk rock side of his life might be able to identify them. If anyone is seriously interested I can post more first hand info on the talk page that you might be able to find published sources for.

Peter Reilly 15:14, 24 June 2006 (UTC)

Thanks for the tip -- I found a page at the SPR site with a lot of writing by and about Donny, and I'll put in a link to it. Would be good to find more info about the amicus brief. --Larrybob 16:24, 27 June 2006 (UTC)

Here is cite for the case

SUPREME COURT OF THE UNITED STATES

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No. 96-511

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JANET RENO, ATTORNEY GENERAL OF THE UNITED STATES, et al., APPELLANTS v. AMERICAN CIVIL LIBERTIES UNION et al. on appeal from the united states district court for the eastern district of pennsylvania [June 26, 1997]

Peter Reilly 12:37, 6 July 2006 (UTC)

http://www.aclu.org/privacy/speech/15486lgl19960225.html

Donny's testimony in Reno V ACLU Peter Reilly 12:49, 6 July 2006 (UTC)

Hello. I've never done this before on Wikipedia. I was a personal friend of 'Donny'. The article states he changed his name 'after highschool'. This is inaccurate. I met him at Columbia University in 1974, and he was still going by Robert (Bob) Martin. He served in the Navy as Martin (he was a Radioman). At that time he was a graduate student at Columbia, in Budhist Studies. I was in the Navy myself, at the time we met (Halloween gay dance at Columbia. He was wearing his favorite sailor's uniform). We were in contact for several years before we lost track. We regained contact when I saw him on 60 Minutes for SPR.

____________________

I know someone who is working on a biography of Donny. Leave a message on my talk page if you want me to put you in touch

Peter Reilly 18:49, 14 October 2006 (UTC)

Removing quality standards template

As far as I can tell, this article is in keeping with Wikipedia's quality standards, so that template should be removed. Any objections? The only major problem I can see is a lack of content. 207.81.15.15 15:46, 6 December 2006 (UTC)

Founder of SPR

It depends on how you look at it. The organization POSRIP(People Organized to Stop the Rape of Imprisoned Persons) was founded by Russell Smith. As far as I know POSRIP was never incorporated. SPR was incorporated and recognized as a 501(c)(3) organization by Donny with a little bit of help from his friends. Subsequent presidents of SPR - Don Collins and Tom Cahill had been active in POSRIP. As with everything else I know about this I haven't been able to figure out how to source it for the main article.

I am Russell Smith. I agree with Donny that in MOST state prison systems, the gay or even the smaller straight person will be in jeopardy of rape. This person has several options. First, there is the option of attaching oneself to a stronger or more dangerous prison for protection. There is the option of maiming or murdering an attacker rapist. I did so at least twice and received sympathy from each judge. What I do not consider to be an option is to go into administrative segregation. The victim would have to snitch to be so protective, which would mark him forever. Further, the victim would have to remain in the cell until release, however lon that may be. Also, some 50 years ago, a riot occurred in the New Mexico prison system. The prisoners literally tore the place to the ground, much more so than any known riot before. They broke into the Admministrative Segregation and opened each door and then tortured all of the protective prisoners to death, including the rape victim. Again, I am Russell Smith. My address is 3810 W. 9th St. Apt. 1, Los Angeles, CA 90019. You wanted the facts, well, these facts are why I separated myself from Just Detention International. I see no help in writing letters or snitching to prison officials or even in legislation. States can refuse to abide by PREA and some have done so. PREA is legislation that brings attention to the issue, but it is by no means an answer. That is my response to your question.

Peter Reilly 19:04, 7 October 2007 (UTC)

Pete, good to see you here. Donny always said he wasn't the founder of SPR,

so I think we should stick with that position. Espertus (talk) 04:52, 16 March 2008 (UTC)

More references

I've added some sources and details to the article. I knew Donny and have a number of articles by and about him and plan to add more. Espertus (talk) 06:49, 16 March 2008 (UTC)

How to refer to Donny in the 1970s?

I added a section on Donny's military experience and switch awkwardly between referring to him as "Donaldson" and "Martin". All of the sources refer to him as "Martin" (since that was the name he went by and enlisted as). Any advice? Espertus (talk) 06:51, 16 March 2008 (UTC)

Religion

I remember Donny being a very devoted Hindu convert when i knew him in the years before his death. I seem to remember people saying he held some post in a temple to a specific diety, and later that he had a Hindu funeral. Anyone got refs? He also contributed to Skinhead Times. RIP, Donny T L Miles (talk) 04:49, 8 June 2008 (UTC)

There are references to his Hinduism, which I plan to add, but I don't think it is true that he had a Hindu funeral. I helped make arrangements after his death and don't believe there was a funeral. There was a memorial service on August 25, 1996, which I did not attend, which, according to my records, was Quaker and at the Metropolitan Community Church. Namaste. Espertus (talk) 06:36, 8 June 2008 (UTC)

Bisexuality

My additions to the article regarding Donaldson's bisexuality were erased, leaving the reader to presume that he was gay (since the current quote includes a reference to his "homosexuality" but not his bisexuality). The reason I was given was that the information was not constructive: pray tell, how and why is clarifying Donaldson's sexual identity not constructive? 80.178.18.208 (talk) 11:14, 29 April 2009 (UTC)

Game Designer?

Is this the same Stephen Donaldson who was a prolific game designer for Simulations Publication, Inc. in the 1970's. If so, my mind is beyond totally blown. 76.254.50.71 (talk) 09:10, 13 July 2013 (UTC)

Ho Lee Fuk, it is apparently true, someone in the NYC punk scene said when he met Donaldson he mentioned being game designer. Donaldson's talent in this field was obvious, and his game "Cityfight" won the 1979 Charles S. Roberts Award for Best Twentieth Century Game. I'll try to add in to this article some of this part of this man's fascinating life. 76.254.50.71 (talk) 17:05, 13 July 2013 (UTC)

Game Designer

Yes. I believe he has credits in the Mech War series. I remember seeing something about that when I visited him in 1995. It was also mentioned in one of his obits as I recall. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Peter Reilly (talk • contribs) 02:24, 22 December 2014 (UTC)

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