BULTENO DE ESPERANTO-SOCIETO DE VAŜINGTONO OKT-DEC-O 1987 PAĜO 1

 

 

 

 

BULTENO DE LA ESPERANTO-SOCIETO DE VAŜINGTONO

 

Nova Serio, #6                               Oktobro-Decembro 1987

 

 

Redaktoro: Ralph Dumain

 

 

KUNVENOJ / KALENDARO / MEETINGS / CALENDAR - 1987

 

Saturday, November 21, 2:30 pm, National Gallery of Art, concourse level, by restaurant opposite waterfall:  informal Esperanto meeting (konversacia rondo).  We may snack, converse, read, exchange magazines & books, and tour the museum.  This is the first of our conversational group gatherings about town.  Call Martha Flores at 587-2017 for further information.  Let us know your interests.

 

Sunday, November 29, 2:30 pm, Museum of American History, cafeteria, basement level: informal Esperanto meeting (konversacia rondo).  Call Martha Flores at 587-2017 for further information. 

 

Saturday, December 5, 1987:  General meeting of the Esperanto Society of Washington.  Time and place to be announced.  Call Joan Gildemeister at 363-6197 for information.

 

Friday, December 11, 1987, 777 UN Plaza, New York City:  6th Annual Conference on Language and Communication: Language and Culture in International Organizations, sponsored by the Center for Research and Documentation on World Language Problems and Translation Division of the United Nations.  Contact Humphrey Tonkin, SUNY College at Potsdam, Potsdam, NY  13676 for conference information.  If you plan to attend contact John Dale at 821-6623.

 

Sunday, December 13, 1987, 5:30 pm, Golden China Restaurant, Woodlawn (near Baltimore), MD:  Annual Zamenhof Banquet of the Esperanto Society of Baltimore in honor of the creator of Esperanto.  All are invited.  See announcement and map on last page.  Please RSVP to Joan Gildemeister at 363-6197 by December 5.  Please inform her if you need or can offer transportation.

 

Saturday, December 19, 1987, 6 pm, Czikos Restaurant, 3601 Connecticut Ave., Washington, DC:  Annual Zamenhof Banquet of the Esperanto Society of Washington.  See separate sheet for full information.  Czikos is in the Broadmoor apartment complex near Porter St. near the Cleveland Park metro stop on the Red Line.  Street parking is available on Rodman or Connecticut Ave.

 

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BULTENO DE ESPERANTO-SOCIETO DE VAŜINGTONO OKT-DEC-O 1987 PAĜO 2

KALENDARO POR 1988 / 1988 CALENDAR

 

The Esperanto Society of Washington will meet the second weekend of each month from January through April, alternating Saturday and Sunday meetings to enable maximum attendance.  Exact days, times, and places will be announced.  For up-to-date information please call Joan Gildemeister.  Meeting dates for May and beyond have not yet been determined.

 

July 1988, San Diego, CA:  Annual Meeting of the Esperanto League for North America.  Write to ELNA for conference information and for membership in ELNA and the Universal Esperanto Association: ELNA, P.O. Box 1129, El Cerrito, CA 94530.

 

 

BEGINNERS' ESPERANTO CLASSES

 

Sundays, 1-2:30 pm, Baha'i Center, 5713 16th Street, N.W., Washington, DC.

 

Saturdays, 2:00 pm, Falls Church, Northern Virginia

 

We are working on setting up other classes as well.  We also have a correspondence course available.  We need volunteers to teach classes.

 

Contact: John Dale at 821-6623 for further information.

 

 

ANONCOJ / ANNOUNCEMENTS

 

NOTE:  Addresses and phone numbers of contact persons mentioned in this newsletter are listed on page 6 if not listed with their respective announcements.

 

NORTHERN VIRGINIA: WHERE ARE YOU?  For those of you "stranded" in Virginia, we are willing to organize meetings, classes, and other activity in your area.  If you are interested contact John Dale at 821-6623.

 

ESPERANTO ON THE TODAY SHOW:  Keep watch the next several Sunday mornings on NBC, Channel 4, for a segment on Esperanto on the Today Show featuring Dr. Humphrey Tonkin.

 

DUES INCREASE:  Please note that society's annual dues is $10 as of the 1988 membership year.  The increase was approved by vote at the September 27 general meeting.  Much of our treasury is burned up in duplication and postage for our newsletters and other announcements.  Our old dues requirement was ridiculously low.  The annual dues is still cheap and is commensurate with if not lower than the dues of other local societies and small organizations.  And remember, we do much more (and would like to do even more) than simply mail announcements and meet monthly.

 

VOLAS KORESPONDI:  Johano Staniszewski, ul. Bialowieska 5/13, 54234 WROCLAW, Poland, estas 44-jara masaĝisto, havas familion.  Interesoj: masaĝo, poŝtmarkoj, turistiko, literaturo, belartoj.  Bonvolu sendi foton.

 

 

OFFICERS FOR 1988 / ESTRARANOJ POR 1988

 

The ballots have been counted and the Executive Council positions for the coming year have been determined.

 

Tim Ryan: Prezidanto / President

 

Martha Flores: Vicprezidanto / Vice President

 

Ralph Dumain: Sekretario / Secretary

 

Phil Chenoweth: Kasisto / Treasurer

 

Joan Gildemeister: Estrarano pri Gastigado kaj Membroservoj / Council Member for Hospitality and Membership Services

 

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BULTENO DE ESPERANTO-SOCIETO DE VAŜINGTONO OKT-DEC-O 1987 PAĜO 3

David Gaines: Estrarano pri Informado kaj Bulteno / Council Member for Information and the Bulletin

 

John Dale: Estrarano pri Edukaj Aferoj kaj Nord-Virginia Agado / Council Member for Educational Affairs and Northern Virginia Activity

 

Congratulations (or is it condolences?) to our new Executive Council!

 

 

MESSAGE FROM THE SECRETARY, RALPH DUMAIN

 

Members of the new and old estraro (leadership, ie. Executive Council) met to evaluate our activities of this year and decide on priorities for the coming year.  Here are our conclusions.

 

We devoted a lot of time to ambitious projects this year: most importantly the Jubilee ELNA Congress and outreach activities such as media interviews, press conferences, and our Adams Morgan Day booth.  Having revived our society out of its dormant state, we had to clear up our by-laws and procedures for elections, decide on dues, deliberate whether to establish our own book service and cultural review, etc.  In the process of attempting to do all this democratically, we were forced to bore you to death with tedious organizational matters and excruciatingly dull business meetings.   Well, those days are over.

 

We want informal meetings, relaxing social events, and conversation.  We want to have fun with Esperanto, not act merely as publicity junkies constantly recruiting and attracting attention to ourselves without even being able to keep our own members interested.  Languages exist to be used, not just advertised.  So the society's number one priority is to focus its attention on its members, on social events, to make them feel welcome and keep them interested.  Our meetings should consist of one or two main attractions and the rest coffee and conversation.  No business will be transacted unless absolutely necessary.  Please let us know what your interests are.

 

My new motto is: ask not what you can do for Esperanto, ask what Esperanto can do for you.  Of course, in the process of making Esperanto work for you, you must contribute something to maintain the viability of Esperanto in the United States and in the world.  So please keep up your membership in our local society and join UEA (the Universal Esperanto Association) and ELNA (the national association) if you can afford to.

 

Our other priority is to strengthen our Esperanto classes.  We will continue outreach activities as needed or as opportunities arise.  What seems to work best is face to face contact with the public.  We can accomplish more by going to other people than by simply advertising and expecting them to come to us.  Street festivals are one way of doing this.

 

In addition to our regular monthly meetings, we are organizing other informal events such as trips to various Smithsonian museums for informal conversation.  We will try to announce all such events via postcards, but if we can't, and if we rarely see you, and if you are interested, please contact Martha Flores to find out what's going on.

 

For those of you new to the society who suffered the bureaucratic nightmare of our September meeting, don't be discouraged.  We needed to get all our business out of the way during the first fall meeting.  That was the last meeting of its kind.  We are finally organized and are ready to party!

 

David Gaines' final presidential message will appear in the next issue.  Please send all copy for the newsletter to David.  This is my last issue as editor of this newsletter.  It's been real.  Thanks for your support of the society.

 

 

 

EVENTS / OKAZAĴOJ

 

Sunday, Sept. 27, 1987:  first General meeting of the Esperanto Society of Washington of the fall season.  Several newcomers showed up.  Unfortunately, we spent too much time on administrative matters: elections, the dues increase, the Zamenhof banquet, and other news and announcements.   Finally, people got a chance to recount experiences of the Universal Congress in Poland and subsequent excursions in Eastern Europe.

 

Sunday, October 11 - Monday, October 12, 1987:  A busload of more than 20 Polish Esperantists on tour in the U.S. visited Washington.  We arranged a special event in their honor at Our Lady Queen of Poland Church in Silver Spring.  We owe special thanks to Martha

 

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BULTENO DE ESPERANTO-SOCIETO DE VAŜINGTONO OKT-DEC-O 1987 PAĜO 4

 

Flores, Joan Gildemeister, Tonje Goldman, and Sunny Aron for cooking for this event, no easy task.  Other local Esperantists and church members showed up and helped to entertain the Polish visitors.  The Poles, in turn, thanked us by singing "May you live 100 years" in Polish and Esperanto.  The event was also attended by some invited Polish journalists.

 

On Columbus Day Tim Ryan and John Dale met the Polish group on the Mall for an excursion around Downtown Washington.

 

Sunday, November 1, 1987: The Esperanto Society of Washington met in the home of Martha Flores.  Evidently you didn't believe my promise to keep boring administrative matters to a minimum.  The 8 people who showed up found out I am a man of my word.  Martha showed her videotape of Washingtonian Esperantists-about-town that she took to Europe as well as footage of European Esperantists that she made on a recent visit to Europe.  Joan Gildemeister showed slides she took during her visit to Poland and the USSR this past summer.  The ballots were counted and the results announced.  We briefly discussed the upcoming banquet.  A few of us remained after the end of the meeting to discuss the future direction of the society.

 

 

RAPORTO PRI LA ELNA-KONGRESO

 

La ELNA-Kongreso estis sufiĉe sukcesa, pli bonkvalita ol antaŭaj kongresoj, almenaŭ.  Ne okazis sufiĉa intereso de la ekstera publiko.  Mi estris diskutrondon pri perspektivoj pri la Esperanta literaturo kaj la manko de Usona kontribuo al Esperanta kulturo.  Oni montris por la publiko la vidbendon de fama komikulo Steve Allen pri Esperanto, kaj sekvis diskutado pri diversaj strategioj kaj filozofioj pri varbado.  Okazis fakaj kunsidoj pri instruado de Esperanto, mikrokomputoroj, scienca agado, bahaismo, katolikismo, unitarianismo, gejunula agado, afrika agado, kaj ateismo.  Veteranoj de la usona movado priparolis proprajn spertojn kaj D-ro Solzbacher resumis iom da la historio.  Okazis kultura vespero kun filmo, diapozitivoj, kantado kaj muziko.  Okazis gazetara kunveno, al kiu venis raportistoj el Los Angeles Times kaj Voice of America.  Okazis ekskurso al Mount Vernon, iama hejmo de George Washington, ankaŭ akcepto por kelkaj ĉe la Pola ambasadejo.  Estis sesio pri tradukado dum kiuj pluraj prilaboris specimenan tradukon.  Esperanto en la publikaj lernejoj estis temo de valora sesio.  Okazis la kutimaj bankedo kaj aferkunsidoj.

 

Laŭ mi, la plej interesa programero estis diskutrondo pri la lingvopolitiko de Usono.  Ni invitis tri eksterulojn-ekspertojn.  Ĉiuj argumentis kontraŭ leĝaj proponoj por ŝanĝi la Usonan konstitucion por oficialigi la anglan lingvon en Usono.  Tiu ŝanĝo rezultigus malpermeson de uzado de fremdaj lingvoj sur balotiloj, en dulingva instruado, ktp.  Multaj Esperantistoj subtenis la oficialigon de la angla, pro kio mi denuncis ilin kaj nomis ilin hipokrituloj, dekstruloj, kaj bigotoj.  Aliaj Esperantistoj pli ĝentile esprimis konstraŭstaron al la nur-anglalingva politiko kaj pluraj diris amuzajn anekdotojn.

 

Dum la bankedo, kvarteto de muzikistoj (kordinstrumentistoj) regalis nin per bela, dolĉa muziko.  Inter ili estis iniciatinto de la kongreso, E. James Lieberman, kiu estas jam bone konata Esperantisto kaj psikiatristo.

 

Fine, ni ekskursis al la Parlamenta Biblioteko (Library of Congress).  Laŭ mia instigo, nia gvidanto montris al ni la kernon de la kolekto pri Esperanto kaj la interlingvista-planlingva literaturo.  Mi gvid-eksplikis tiun sekcion de la kolekto.

 

La programero pri perspektivoj pri la Esperanta literaturo kaj la manko de Usona kontribuo al Esperanta kulturo estis miksaĵo de citaĵoj el mia eseo kaj komentoj de la ĉeestintaro.   Estis tempo nur pri ĝeneralaj komentoj pri la Esperanta beletro kaj diskuto pri kulturpolitiko de tradukado. 

 

Mi resumis multajn plendojn dum la lastaj 50 jaroj fare de  Price-Heywood, Silfer, Nogueira, Balbin, ktp., pri la banala perspektivo de Esperantistoj kaj ties literaturaj efikoj.  Iu akuzis Silfer pri elitismo kaj asertis, reage al iama kritiko de Balbin, ke surrealismo kaj similaj artmovadoj estas flankvojoj de monda literaturo kaj menciitaj kriterioj pri moderneco montras troan okcidentan perspektivon. 

 

Mi ne havis sufiĉan tempon eldiri mian perspektivon pri la manko de Usona kontribuo al Esperanta literaturo kaj kulturo.  Mi sugestis, ke aldone al objektivoj baroj al intereso pri Esperanto en Usono, la infaneca kaj banala etoso de Usona Esperantujo, kiu malinstigas seriozecon aŭ pri la mondo aŭ pri beletra verkado.  Ekzemple, grupkantado de plej aĉaj movadismaj lirikoj kiujn oni kantas laŭ la plej eksmodaj kaj sterilaj popolkantoj, ekz. "My Bonnie lies over the Ocean" (Mia Bonnie/belulino ripozas/kuŝas trans la oceano/maro): "Afrikoj en densa ĝangalo, ... sen di', [kantas] ... Esperanto estas la lingvo por ni, por ni ... ":  Ĉi tiu kantaĉo estas la plej malalta, la plej aĉa manifestaĵo de banaleco kaj neado de la reala mondo kaj sufiĉas por ke la Usona Esperantistaro meritu la malestimon de la mondo.  Ĝi estas bonega ekzemplo de la senesperiga banaleco de la Usona E-o subkulturo kio rigardas ne la mondon sed sian propran memgratulan vakuon.  Same senvalora estas la konstanta ludado de trivialaj teatraĵetoj pri Esperanto kaj la lingvoproblemoj, kiuj montras la intelektan kaj spiritan pigrecon de Usonaj Esperantistoj.

 

Oni sonbendigis kaj vidbendigis diversajn programerojn.

 

 

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BULTENO DE ESPERANTO-SOCIETO DE VAŜINGTONO OKT-DEC-O 1987 PAĜO 5

DUMAIN'S 8 RULES FOR ESPERANTO INFORMATION

 

I declined the 1988 presidency for philosophical and other reasons.  I cannot represent ESW as a whole because I represent a minority view in the American Esperanto movement.  As outgoing newsletter editor, this is my final opportunity to state my views.  Like Montezuma, I am taking my revenge.

 

Many of you already know how much I dislike the standard promotional approaches.  I say stick to facts and avoid argumentation, proselytizing, propaganda, unverified assumptions, or infantile sentimentality.  Here are my recommendations.

 

(1) Do not give disproportionate coverage of the life of Zamenhof.  Do not glorify him and uncritically promote his naive political or social views or his conception of Esperanto and homaranismo as the path to universal brotherhood.

 

(2) Emphasize the diversity of goals and views among Esperantists, from hobbyists to idealist fanatics, and the diversity of opinion among Esperantists about the future of the language and the feasability of reaching the original goal of universal acceptance as the language of international communication.

 

(3) Emphasize the richness and variety of the cultural history of the Esperanto movement itself, and its relationships with larger historical events.

 

(4) Emphasize the relations of Esperanto with the outer world: support, persecution, and practical applications and milestones.  Examples of practical milestones would be the acceptance of Esperanto as a clear language in telegraphy in the 1920s and the use of Esperanto as an interlanguage for computer translation in the 1980s, and Esperanto's recent support by the Chinese government.

 

(5) Emphasize the various uses to which Esperantists put their language.  Bare information about the structure of the language gives no incentive to want to do anything with it.  Neither does an abstract argument for the need or utility of a universally accepted international language.

 

(6) Stress that Esperanto lives a double life.  Esperantists seek support and practical uses for their language in the world at large; at the same time they maintain an internal cultural life.  While the future and ultimate practicality of the language are rationally disputable, the present uses and value of Esperanto to its users are simply matters of fact.

 

(7) Stick to the facts.  Do not parrot linguistic, psychological, or political arguments for Esperanto and against English which you are not competent to judge.  Examples of common stupidities: (1) Africans are resentful of and unwilling to learn English (French, etc.), (2) English is inherently an imperialist language from the viewpoint of the third world, (3) the relation between language and culture is fixed; a language must always reflect the culture which originated it, (4) the third world needs Esperanto for science and technology, (5) Esperanto is not really a European language; it is similar to Turkish (Chinese, etc.), (6) Esperanto is a solution for all language conflicts, eg. Canada could use Esperanto as its official language and solve the English-French conflict.

 

(8) Become well informed about the history of Esperanto.  Most American Esperantists are as ignorant of this as they are of everything else.  People should understand what they are talking about when "explaining" the role of Esperanto in computer translation or in any other area involving some technical understanding of the subject matter.

 

 

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BULTENO DE ESPERANTO-SOCIETO DE VAŜINGTONO OKT-DEC-O 1987 PAĜO 6

KONTAKTOTOJ / CONTACT PERSONS

 

Prezidanto / President       Prezidonto                     Kasisto / Treasurer   

David Gaines                       President-Elect                 Phil Chenoweth        

[address blanked out]              Tim Ryan                            [address blanked out]

[address blanked out]              [address blanked out]            [address blanked out]         

Sterling, VA  22170                  [address blanked out]            Leisure World, MD 20906

[phone blanked out]                Alexandria, VA 22311            [phone blanked out]         

[phone blanked out]                [phone blanked out]        

                                                                                                   

Sekretario / Secretary       Estrarano                        Estrarano             

Ralph Dumain                      Council Member              Council Member        

1629 Columbia Road, N.W.       John Dale                           Joan Gildemeister     

Apt. 615                                 [address blanked out]           [address blanked out] 

Washington, DC  20009            Falls Church, VA 22043         Washington, DC 20008  

[phone blanked out]                [phone blanked out]             [phone blanked out]       

                                            [phone blanked out]

  

Vicprezidanto            

Vice President           

Martha Flores            

[address blanked out]   

Silver Spring, MD 20910  

[phone blanked out]