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Ain't I A Woman? newspapers, June 1970-July 1971
1970-06-26 "Ain't I a Woman?" Page 2
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editorial There are many reasons why we felt a need to put out a paper in Iowa City. Until now there have been no underground or peoples papers in Iowa City. T here have only been the usual commercial town paper and the University paper. Neither can be trusted to function as a service for the people who read them. Both subscribe to the good journalistic "professionalism" thus being written for the people not by the people. Both are controlled by capitalist interests and concerns. Both, as most newspapers, display unmitigated sexism. We also feel that there is a special need to increase communication between sisters in the Mid-West. Not only because this will make large actions possible and events better publicized but because we see the Mid-West as having particular problems and conditions with which we have to deal. Women in the mid-west with the exception of the few large urban areas, find themselves working in their city's only women's liberation group. There simply are not numbers enough to split along so many interest or political lines. Sometimes the organization itself is the only group within a radius of 50 miles or more. Unlike our sisters in Chicago or Detroit, who have large brown and black populations and proportionately large working class populations, most of us tend to work in groups that are campus based rather than community based. We find ourselves dealing with middle-class, university privilege and bourgeois mentality and find it difficult to gear our actions toward meeting the needs of the last first even though we are committed to do this. It is also difficult to find targets to attack as a big industry and media pigs tend to nest on the east or west coasts. We have no Grove Press here. Those us us working in the mid-west need to work out these problems together. There are special reasons, however, why we needed a paper for and by women. All of us tend not only to be without confidence in this area but also without developed ability. We need to develop all kinds of abilities and know we have not been able to do this working jointly with men. We would tend to do mostly routine shit work even if this wasn't imposed on us. We would volunteer for it since we don't feel the confidence to volunteer for or do more statusy work. Even if the men we worked with were free from the male chauvinist pig mentality that has intimidated and humilated us all our lives, (this situation is pure fantasy at this stage of the game), we have been conditioned to play our subordinate role too well and have had too many experiences of seeing ourselves pitted against each other in some ridiculous, competitive way. And this would most likely happen since men, although some see the implications of women's liberation, tend to work in the same way using the same pig structures as before. It is important to put out a newspaper in our own way - a collective way. We want no hierarchy of editor, assistants, staff, etc. All the people working on the paper should be involved in all decisions and policy. We want to maintain no "professional" standards. "Professionalism" has been used as an excuse for the educated elite to corner the market on knowledge and communication. We feel all women have something to say and can say it. Wee have been kept down by rigid structures forever. We don't want any part of them - even the top part. We want new structures that do not allow people to fall into leader/follower, boss/worker, powerful/powerless roles. We don't want to work in any situation in which we are oppressed or in any situation in which we do oppress. Not only do we want to work collectively on the AIN'T I A WOMAN staff but would like to expand that kind of collectivity to all sisters in the mid-west. In addition to asking for articles we would like commitments from other WL groups in the mid-west to do their own page. We hope that AIN'T I A WOMAN will serve as a forum of communication between women in the mid-west about ideas, actions, and events. This issue is mostly by and about Iowa City Women's Liberation Front - we hope that won't happen again. Vickey Pat Debbie Dale Linda Penny Lori Carole Julie Carol Anne Pat Sue Linda [Drawn image of person locked in stocks] hang ups I can't write. If I try to write something, no one will like it, but they'll be afraid to say so, so they'll print it anyway, and it will ruin the paper; they'll hate me and I'll feel awful. Maybe I should just volunteer to type and paste up--no, just type: I don't know how to paste up. What do we know about putting out a newspaper? Maybe other Mid-Western groups won't know much either so they won't know it's bad; but I bet they will know and think Iowa City is funky. Maybe all the other sisters will know how to do stuff and I won't have to do anything, but I'll still feel bad. Even if we make money, we'll probably lose it somehow. The printer might screw us. The male radicals, who all know how to write, will laugh. I don't know how to draw and maybe no one else does either. Maybe I'll ruin my film. If I walk around taking pictures, everyone will think "that woman thinks she's really good" and I'll be bad and they'll laugh. When we finish laying out our first issue, I'll spill coffee on it. ♀ ♀ ♀ You can contribute by sending us articles, reviews, opinions, rages, etc. You can also contribute by committing your women's liberation group to a page, either in each issue or in every other issue. This kind of commitment is the best way to make a mid-west paper of AIN'T I A WOMAN? The page can be articles (or any kind of printed material), pictures, drawings, cartoons, poems, etc. Fill it; its yours! Write if your group is interested. We'll send you details, deadlines, etc. If your group wants to receive bundles of AIN"T I A WOMAN, send 15¢ per copy (minimum bundle: 20 copies) in advance. AIN'T I A WOMAN? SUBSCRIPTION NAME____________ ADDRESS ________ __________________ __________________ 24 issues $4.00 AIN'T I A WOMAN? is published on the second and fourth Fridays of each month by the Publications Collective of the Iowa City Women's Liberation Front, 301 Jefferson Bldg., Iowa City 52240 2 June 26, 1970 [Arm image] Ain't I
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editorial There are many reasons why we felt a need to put out a paper in Iowa City. Until now there have been no underground or peoples papers in Iowa City. T here have only been the usual commercial town paper and the University paper. Neither can be trusted to function as a service for the people who read them. Both subscribe to the good journalistic "professionalism" thus being written for the people not by the people. Both are controlled by capitalist interests and concerns. Both, as most newspapers, display unmitigated sexism. We also feel that there is a special need to increase communication between sisters in the Mid-West. Not only because this will make large actions possible and events better publicized but because we see the Mid-West as having particular problems and conditions with which we have to deal. Women in the mid-west with the exception of the few large urban areas, find themselves working in their city's only women's liberation group. There simply are not numbers enough to split along so many interest or political lines. Sometimes the organization itself is the only group within a radius of 50 miles or more. Unlike our sisters in Chicago or Detroit, who have large brown and black populations and proportionately large working class populations, most of us tend to work in groups that are campus based rather than community based. We find ourselves dealing with middle-class, university privilege and bourgeois mentality and find it difficult to gear our actions toward meeting the needs of the last first even though we are committed to do this. It is also difficult to find targets to attack as a big industry and media pigs tend to nest on the east or west coasts. We have no Grove Press here. Those us us working in the mid-west need to work out these problems together. There are special reasons, however, why we needed a paper for and by women. All of us tend not only to be without confidence in this area but also without developed ability. We need to develop all kinds of abilities and know we have not been able to do this working jointly with men. We would tend to do mostly routine shit work even if this wasn't imposed on us. We would volunteer for it since we don't feel the confidence to volunteer for or do more statusy work. Even if the men we worked with were free from the male chauvinist pig mentality that has intimidated and humilated us all our lives, (this situation is pure fantasy at this stage of the game), we have been conditioned to play our subordinate role too well and have had too many experiences of seeing ourselves pitted against each other in some ridiculous, competitive way. And this would most likely happen since men, although some see the implications of women's liberation, tend to work in the same way using the same pig structures as before. It is important to put out a newspaper in our own way - a collective way. We want no hierarchy of editor, assistants, staff, etc. All the people working on the paper should be involved in all decisions and policy. We want to maintain no "professional" standards. "Professionalism" has been used as an excuse for the educated elite to corner the market on knowledge and communication. We feel all women have something to say and can say it. Wee have been kept down by rigid structures forever. We don't want any part of them - even the top part. We want new structures that do not allow people to fall into leader/follower, boss/worker, powerful/powerless roles. We don't want to work in any situation in which we are oppressed or in any situation in which we do oppress. Not only do we want to work collectively on the AIN'T I A WOMAN staff but would like to expand that kind of collectivity to all sisters in the mid-west. In addition to asking for articles we would like commitments from other WL groups in the mid-west to do their own page. We hope that AIN'T I A WOMAN will serve as a forum of communication between women in the mid-west about ideas, actions, and events. This issue is mostly by and about Iowa City Women's Liberation Front - we hope that won't happen again. Vickey Pat Debbie Dale Linda Penny Lori Carole Julie Carol Anne Pat Sue Linda [Drawn image of person locked in stocks] hang ups I can't write. If I try to write something, no one will like it, but they'll be afraid to say so, so they'll print it anyway, and it will ruin the paper; they'll hate me and I'll feel awful. Maybe I should just volunteer to type and paste up--no, just type: I don't know how to paste up. What do we know about putting out a newspaper? Maybe other Mid-Western groups won't know much either so they won't know it's bad; but I bet they will know and think Iowa City is funky. Maybe all the other sisters will know how to do stuff and I won't have to do anything, but I'll still feel bad. Even if we make money, we'll probably lose it somehow. The printer might screw us. The male radicals, who all know how to write, will laugh. I don't know how to draw and maybe no one else does either. Maybe I'll ruin my film. If I walk around taking pictures, everyone will think "that woman thinks she's really good" and I'll be bad and they'll laugh. When we finish laying out our first issue, I'll spill coffee on it. ♀ ♀ ♀ You can contribute by sending us articles, reviews, opinions, rages, etc. You can also contribute by committing your women's liberation group to a page, either in each issue or in every other issue. This kind of commitment is the best way to make a mid-west paper of AIN'T I A WOMAN? The page can be articles (or any kind of printed material), pictures, drawings, cartoons, poems, etc. Fill it; its yours! Write if your group is interested. We'll send you details, deadlines, etc. If your group wants to receive bundles of AIN"T I A WOMAN, send 15¢ per copy (minimum bundle: 20 copies) in advance. AIN'T I A WOMAN? SUBSCRIPTION NAME____________ ADDRESS ________ __________________ __________________ 24 issues $4.00 AIN'T I A WOMAN? is published on the second and fourth Fridays of each month by the Publications Collective of the Iowa City Women's Liberation Front, 301 Jefferson Bldg., Iowa City 52240 2 June 26, 1970 [Arm image] Ain't I
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