Dear Reader,
I take great pleasure welcoming you to the first edition of Critical Civitates: A Journal of the People. CC explores social issues and remains now and forever devoted to exposing hypocrisy, cruelty, and other forms of social illness while celebrating the potential of the human will to overcome adversity. We are disciplined and opposed to hedonistic frivolity: we strive for things mindful, respectful, and protective. We openly honor the subjugated. We accept and celebrate the pluralistic nature of human experience, the “multi” in multilingual, multicultural, multigendered, and multiregional. Art and ideas within Critical Civitates unabashedly reveal the vulgar prose of life through the concept of 仁爱 (Ren Ai), so we might all as much bear witness to oppression as strive for and glorify the possibilities of actualized liberation.
This is not a blog. Critical Civitates is an online publication, a multimedia artistic journal expressing ideas radically opposed to New World Order corporatist sensibilities. In terms of publishable mediums, we currently seek essays, poems, and photo documentary, though we will consider other works. Topics remain fairly open: education, liberation, union matters, nature, social reality, religion, participation, emancipation, and other such contemplations appeal to our interests. We are okay with pointing fingers, but we expect scholarship. You may publish in any language, multiple languages, or in translation. We ask for editorial assistance when the range of variation exceeds our versatility. We are but humble scholars. We won't publish the work until a reliable reference has read it. At the end of the day, we expect submissions to represent sustained contemplations, and we have no problem publishing,multiple works in multiple volumes representing a single author or group. We are open and supportive. We don't own the copyright: the author owns that. We do ask, politely, that you cite Critical Civitates if the ideas expressed here add to your scholarship.
The construction of Critical Civitates is progressive. The editorial staff and I look forward to presenting and displaying artistic expression of that perspective in myriad forms as well as works generally considered academic in tone: Multimedia presentations, speeches, essays, poems, plays, photo documentary, music, film, and painting are a few mediums within the scope of this endeavor. In terms of our progressive process-oriented approach, forgive us as we construct and publish and develop at the same time. Our first step was to create an online presence, which we did through social networking and this website. We will work toward hardcopy representations as time allows.
And that brings me to the introduction of the first essay we have the privilege of publishing, a work representative of what Critical Civitates strives to present and why it is a journal of the people. “Lu al Final del Túnel” is a narrative written by Catalina Zabala. We are in this together: this is her first published work as well our first publication. "The Light at the End of the Tunnel" is world systems theory playing out in the lived experience of a little girl from Zacatecas, Mexico. It's an immigrant’s story. Through Catalina’s story telling, memory is exposed and expressed for readers who become witnesses to layers upon layers of oppression that end in what might or might not be a kind of liberation: You must decide for yourself what you think when you reach the light at the end of this tunnel. Remember, Catalina's is one story. There are many, many others. What of those other children? That is the kind of questioning Catalina’s essay and the art of Critical Civitates compel us to ask.
The second work in this first volume flows from the heart of Pacific Northwest writer, Viola Ware. In " Why Not Take All of Me?" (alluding to the Sinatra song) readers have a chance to perceive the possibility of pluralistic reality in ways far beyond anything Sinatra's generation might have imagined. We discover through this essay that perceptual damming cannot long withstand the torrential rush of identity awareness and understanding. We will see more of Viola Ware in later volumes. As revealing as this first essay is, Ware has so much more to share with readers. Her talents as a photographic artist and poet are bubbling creeks in otherwise quiet mountains: the editors here at CC believe you will enjoy her contributions over the course of the next few years.
A short, more narrative poem by Gordan R. Livingston moves readers through a childhood transformation. As editor, the call for me to tell you something about every work keeps harkening. But the loss here is my own. I just don't have words to describe Livingston's message. I can't say more to you than the author of this poem. I can't express more than these cryptic remarks. I can't provide more than this stumbling commentary: Livingston's poem are the words and the thoughts of a man just entering the winter years of his life, a man who witnesses the sorrow of a child and relates to us the horrific power of unintended hedonism to derail human potential.
Finally, it is an honor to introduce a writer I've been paying attention to for the past twenty years or so, Solo Greene. Solo is an enrolled Niimiipuu (Nez Perce) tribal member. He is Titoquin. He lives on the reservation in Lapwai, Idaho where he served on the city council. You won't find people like Solo in the mainstream publications. His authentic reality is not honored by the New World Order. You have to dig deep to find the work of somebody like Mr. Greene. Several years ago, I read Solo's essays in Tatz Titoquin, the tribal newspaper for the Nez Perce Nation, and I have made the effort to see him presenting in various locations all over America. He is a quite doer, a writer/speaker who maintains his cultural traditions and keeps presenting a positive message in his writings and presentations. Most every day, he goes to work and then goes to the sweathouse. Then he goes home to be with his family. He writes and presents in his spare time. Solo works for the love of his people, and his essays call on all of us to do the same. He is the real deal, an enrolled tribal member whose educational and athletic accomplishments fit naturally with his traditional lifestyle and his devotion to family and to a community-oriented focus. His essay, "The Little Things," seemed fitting for this first edition of Critical Civitates since we are a small publication with a small audience, but we have such big hopes. Solo reminds us that our big dreams are nothing if we don't remember all the little things. It is the little things, after all, that make our lives meaningful. As with the work of Viola Ware, readers will have the opportunity to read more of Solo's work as time goes by.
Readers will notice this introduction comes at the end of the line. We wanted it that way. There is no reason to subordinate the artists' work to my position as editor or to the role of the editorial staff here at Critical Civitates. We don't need or really want what we say to be remembered. We strive for our authors and for the Agathon. We do our best to edit the work collaboratively for the sake of consistency and to diminish distraction. The humble words of introduction come last because we prefer you remember the words and stories and images the artists present. We believe the artists' message is clear enough without our introductory intrusion: injustice, inequality, oppression, violence, and any other forms of domination are wrong; consequently, what we have to do is pay attention to the artists who show us the vulgar aspects of life and teach us how to be just, how to seek equality, inclusion, kindness, and how to act with benevolent compassion. And that is what all of the artists in this first volume of Critical Civitates have done for us. We look forward to presenting the works of other artists with the same message. We believe peaceful transformation is possible, and we, like the artists in this first volume, are willing to work toward that revolutionary outcome.
With respect,
AM
I take great pleasure welcoming you to the first edition of Critical Civitates: A Journal of the People. CC explores social issues and remains now and forever devoted to exposing hypocrisy, cruelty, and other forms of social illness while celebrating the potential of the human will to overcome adversity. We are disciplined and opposed to hedonistic frivolity: we strive for things mindful, respectful, and protective. We openly honor the subjugated. We accept and celebrate the pluralistic nature of human experience, the “multi” in multilingual, multicultural, multigendered, and multiregional. Art and ideas within Critical Civitates unabashedly reveal the vulgar prose of life through the concept of 仁爱 (Ren Ai), so we might all as much bear witness to oppression as strive for and glorify the possibilities of actualized liberation.
This is not a blog. Critical Civitates is an online publication, a multimedia artistic journal expressing ideas radically opposed to New World Order corporatist sensibilities. In terms of publishable mediums, we currently seek essays, poems, and photo documentary, though we will consider other works. Topics remain fairly open: education, liberation, union matters, nature, social reality, religion, participation, emancipation, and other such contemplations appeal to our interests. We are okay with pointing fingers, but we expect scholarship. You may publish in any language, multiple languages, or in translation. We ask for editorial assistance when the range of variation exceeds our versatility. We are but humble scholars. We won't publish the work until a reliable reference has read it. At the end of the day, we expect submissions to represent sustained contemplations, and we have no problem publishing,multiple works in multiple volumes representing a single author or group. We are open and supportive. We don't own the copyright: the author owns that. We do ask, politely, that you cite Critical Civitates if the ideas expressed here add to your scholarship.
The construction of Critical Civitates is progressive. The editorial staff and I look forward to presenting and displaying artistic expression of that perspective in myriad forms as well as works generally considered academic in tone: Multimedia presentations, speeches, essays, poems, plays, photo documentary, music, film, and painting are a few mediums within the scope of this endeavor. In terms of our progressive process-oriented approach, forgive us as we construct and publish and develop at the same time. Our first step was to create an online presence, which we did through social networking and this website. We will work toward hardcopy representations as time allows.
And that brings me to the introduction of the first essay we have the privilege of publishing, a work representative of what Critical Civitates strives to present and why it is a journal of the people. “Lu al Final del Túnel” is a narrative written by Catalina Zabala. We are in this together: this is her first published work as well our first publication. "The Light at the End of the Tunnel" is world systems theory playing out in the lived experience of a little girl from Zacatecas, Mexico. It's an immigrant’s story. Through Catalina’s story telling, memory is exposed and expressed for readers who become witnesses to layers upon layers of oppression that end in what might or might not be a kind of liberation: You must decide for yourself what you think when you reach the light at the end of this tunnel. Remember, Catalina's is one story. There are many, many others. What of those other children? That is the kind of questioning Catalina’s essay and the art of Critical Civitates compel us to ask.
The second work in this first volume flows from the heart of Pacific Northwest writer, Viola Ware. In " Why Not Take All of Me?" (alluding to the Sinatra song) readers have a chance to perceive the possibility of pluralistic reality in ways far beyond anything Sinatra's generation might have imagined. We discover through this essay that perceptual damming cannot long withstand the torrential rush of identity awareness and understanding. We will see more of Viola Ware in later volumes. As revealing as this first essay is, Ware has so much more to share with readers. Her talents as a photographic artist and poet are bubbling creeks in otherwise quiet mountains: the editors here at CC believe you will enjoy her contributions over the course of the next few years.
A short, more narrative poem by Gordan R. Livingston moves readers through a childhood transformation. As editor, the call for me to tell you something about every work keeps harkening. But the loss here is my own. I just don't have words to describe Livingston's message. I can't say more to you than the author of this poem. I can't express more than these cryptic remarks. I can't provide more than this stumbling commentary: Livingston's poem are the words and the thoughts of a man just entering the winter years of his life, a man who witnesses the sorrow of a child and relates to us the horrific power of unintended hedonism to derail human potential.
Finally, it is an honor to introduce a writer I've been paying attention to for the past twenty years or so, Solo Greene. Solo is an enrolled Niimiipuu (Nez Perce) tribal member. He is Titoquin. He lives on the reservation in Lapwai, Idaho where he served on the city council. You won't find people like Solo in the mainstream publications. His authentic reality is not honored by the New World Order. You have to dig deep to find the work of somebody like Mr. Greene. Several years ago, I read Solo's essays in Tatz Titoquin, the tribal newspaper for the Nez Perce Nation, and I have made the effort to see him presenting in various locations all over America. He is a quite doer, a writer/speaker who maintains his cultural traditions and keeps presenting a positive message in his writings and presentations. Most every day, he goes to work and then goes to the sweathouse. Then he goes home to be with his family. He writes and presents in his spare time. Solo works for the love of his people, and his essays call on all of us to do the same. He is the real deal, an enrolled tribal member whose educational and athletic accomplishments fit naturally with his traditional lifestyle and his devotion to family and to a community-oriented focus. His essay, "The Little Things," seemed fitting for this first edition of Critical Civitates since we are a small publication with a small audience, but we have such big hopes. Solo reminds us that our big dreams are nothing if we don't remember all the little things. It is the little things, after all, that make our lives meaningful. As with the work of Viola Ware, readers will have the opportunity to read more of Solo's work as time goes by.
Readers will notice this introduction comes at the end of the line. We wanted it that way. There is no reason to subordinate the artists' work to my position as editor or to the role of the editorial staff here at Critical Civitates. We don't need or really want what we say to be remembered. We strive for our authors and for the Agathon. We do our best to edit the work collaboratively for the sake of consistency and to diminish distraction. The humble words of introduction come last because we prefer you remember the words and stories and images the artists present. We believe the artists' message is clear enough without our introductory intrusion: injustice, inequality, oppression, violence, and any other forms of domination are wrong; consequently, what we have to do is pay attention to the artists who show us the vulgar aspects of life and teach us how to be just, how to seek equality, inclusion, kindness, and how to act with benevolent compassion. And that is what all of the artists in this first volume of Critical Civitates have done for us. We look forward to presenting the works of other artists with the same message. We believe peaceful transformation is possible, and we, like the artists in this first volume, are willing to work toward that revolutionary outcome.
With respect,
AM