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Toward Barefoot Journalism
By Mike Murase
Pages 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15
This article is posted with the permission of the author
[Editor's Note (from Counterpoint): Gidra suspended publication after, the Fifth Anniversary issue in April 1974. The following article originally appeared in the final issue of Gidra.]
This issue of Gidra will be the last issue of Gidra, at least for three months-probably longer and possibly forever.
It is difficult now to recall what happened during the five-year life of Gidra, to write down all that has transpired. Yet, an explanation of why we decided to suspend publication seems to be in order. As well, some reflections, predictions and random thoughts are unavoidable.
It should be noted at the outset that what follows is not the collective statement by the entire staff, but is only a part of what I feel and see personally. While we as a staff agree on many things, we are by no means singular in our outlook toward change, neither are we always united in the methods. The fact that no blanket conformity exists has been a strength, I think, but there is a need for struggle between ideas of different kinds. In the past we haven't always settled questions of an ideological nature or controversial issues by the democratic method of discussion, of criticism, of persuasion and education. We have yet to examine many of our shortcomings in a systematic fashion, and, worse, we have not always taken steps to correct those that we already recognize.
As it is said, dust will accumulate if a room is not cleaned regularly, and our faces will get dirty if they are not washed regularly. Gidra, the paper and the staff, may also collect dust, and also need sweeping and washing. And the collective dust of Gidra has a way of piling up, so much so that we must stop all else to sweep and wash. Problems have a way of being cumulative, so much so that only a comprehensive problem-solving approach can make a difference in what we do. It is time for self-appraisal and evaluation, not only as an organization, but for many of us, as individuals.
There is a shared feeling, a premonition if you will, that now is somehow a good time to sum up our experiences. We want to go on, continue publishing, but we need now to see how far we have come, so that we may be clear about where we are headed and how we will get there.
What is happening at Gidra is not unique to us alone. Many groups seem to be undergoing similar experiences. In Los Angeles, Yellow Brotherhood, a self-help group for youth on the Westside, and JACSAI (Japanese American Community Services/ Asian Involvement), a multi-service community office in Little Tokyo, both organized soon after the birth of Gidra, are now in the process of evaluating their programs and face critical periods in their development. Other organizations are confronted with pessimism and confusion within their own ranks,
For us at Gidra, what we face isn't a phenomenon that hit us broadside without warning. It is something we had lived with for at least three years, and something that was anticipated from the very beginning of our involvement. Gidra has never been without problems. Even in 1969, our first year of existence, we faced organizational problems with inequitable work distribution, not to speak of uneven political and personal development.
More recently, for several months now, the process of putting out the paper-the tedious routine of investigating, writing, editing, typesetting, layout, mailing-had become mechanical, individualized and alienating. Fewer people came to the office to do the work each month. Attendance at staff meetings became irregular. At one meeting not long ago, there were only four of us. With only a handful of people working long hours, deadlines passed. ...The "press runs"(originally one week periods set aside each month for actual production of the paper) became longer and longer. Tasks began to consume more of our time and drain people of energy. Morale and discipline plummeted.