Three friends and colleagues share their stories of Dan Mansfield, a leader in the Deaf and DeafBlind communities. As a young man, Dan grew up Deaf but resisted his diagnosis of Usher Syndrome, a genetic disorder resulting in a combination of hearing and vision loss. His older sisters had already become both Deaf and blind. At their encouragement, he became involved in the DeafBlind community, eventually taking up leadership roles locally and nationally.

Being raised in a deeply religious family made it difficult for Dan to come out as a gay man, but once he did, he quickly became a leader in Seattle’s Deaf LGBTQ+ community. He founded and became the first president of the Northwest Rainbow Alliance of the Deaf (NWRAD). Later, when Dan received his diagnosis of AIDS, he bravely shared that information with others and channeled his energies towards providing AIDS education to Deaf and DeafBlind communities of the Pacific Northwest.

This film was created for The AMP: AIDS Memorial Pathway in Seattle.

[Poster image description: A black and white picture of a white male with a beard, smiling at the camera. He is wearing a dark colored shirt with a light-colored tie. The left half of the picture is in dark with white text on the bottom: “Remembering Dan Mansfield.”]

[Movie still image description: An old snapshot showing three men standing next to each other and smiling at the camera. The low-quality of the photo makes a blurred view of the men who are all wearing white shirts.]