Council At-Large Candidate Bio: Don B. Pratt

Don Pratt is a long time Lexington social activist. Don went to prison rather than support the Vietnam War, worked to help integrate University of Kentucky athletics, and has advocated for progressive reforms ever since. Don marched with Justice William O. Douglas to help save the Red River Gorge, marched with Martin Luther King for civil rights, and has protested all over Eastern Kentucky against strip mining and mountaintop removal, and for the rights of coal miners. Don has been a foster parent for many years, and has helped raise over fifty foster children, most the victims of childhood sexual abuse. One of his current projects is the collection of used luggage to be used by foster and adoptive parents. Don owned the Woodland Grocery for many years, in which he hosted Lexington’s favorite political salon, where political views were exchanged and country ham sandwiches eaten. Don has seen the best and the worst sides of politics in our nation, from the hate-filled rhetoric of Lester Maddox and George Wallace to the non-violent resistance of Dr. King. He would love to see Lexington move from the segregation and social stratification of his youth and the money-driven political corruption of today to become a shining city on a hill, the progressive example for the remainder of Kentucky that it can become if each of us takes our civic responsibilities seriously.