We are pleased to share with you some news about the work the USAF Working Group has been doing behind the scenes for the last few months.  

In January 2020, the USAF Board of Directors approved a proposal from the Working Group to highlight and promote issues around equity and inclusion within its organization. Sharon Dominguez was appointed as the Working Group Chair and joined by Sylvie Firestone, Harvey Konigsberg, Julia Freedgood, Arturo Peal, and Christine Wong.

Mission and Goals

What is the Working Group’s mission? 

To foster and promote inclusivity and diversity within the USAF, and to provide USAF Instructors with tools and information for addressing these issues within their dojos.

What are the Working Group’s goals? 

1. Increase recognition that gender equality and unconscious bias are valid issues that need exploration in the USAF.

2. Create lasting programs that identify, acknowledge, and improve the culture of inclusion and representation of women, BIPOC, and LGBTQIA members within the USAF structure, as well as in USAF activities and seminars. 

3. Identify the needs of dojos, if any, to promote growth and inclusion.

4. Help address membership retention issues that may arise from conscious and unconscious bias.

5. Collaborate with the Board, Technical Committee, Administrators, key members, and specialists to fulfill the above objectives in 2020 and beyond. 

What are some concrete results the Working Group has accomplished so far?

• Gender and equity training has been provided and completed by the entire Board, Technical Committee members, the Technical Advisor, Administration, Consultants, and the Working Group.
• A program of training on gender equity and implicit bias (sexual harassment prevention training) is currently being organized for all dojo-cho and chief instructors to complete in 2021 as part of the membership guidelines and renewal process.
• Gender and equity discussions open to all attendees at the USAF annual summer camp was planned but postponed due to COVID-19.
• Plans to hold a “Meet & Greet” during summer camp to introduce the Working Group and to mingle with members of the Aikido community was curtailed due to COVID-19.
• Collaborated with the Board and Technical Committee to produce Aikido Online classes for adults and kids, featuring instructors within the diverse USAF community, and globally transmitted live on the USAF FaceBook page.
• A series of online conversations focusing on Gender, Equity, Race, and Implicit Bias have been initiated for USAF dojo-cho and instructors. The initial roundtable discussion on Race & Bias was well attended with over 80 participants.
• Sharon Dominguez was appointed as a senior delegate and the USA representative of the International Aikido Federation (IAF) Gender Balance Working Group and is working with people globally on these issues.

What are the Working Group’s next steps for 2020 and beyond?

• Partnering with the IAF to produce Zoom classes featuring women from multiple aikido organizations within the US.
• Organizing community outreach initiatives such as The Dojo-cho Video Conversations about the effects of COVID-19 on USAF dojos, comparing strategies for member engagement, online presence, and dojo reopening procedures.
• The next Dojo-cho Video Conversation as part of our series, Equity, Inclusion, and the Future of Aikido will address bias as it relates to gender and sexuality.
• Planning climate surveys for USAF dojos to use internally as a tool to assess the environment within their dojo. Request that the data be shared with The Working Group, to measure the progress of these initiatives.
• Continue to explore ways to celebrate our diverse community and to help support our instructors and membership.

We will stay in touch as we continue our work, and welcome your comments and feedback along the way!

On September 14^th, a petition titled “Support Women in the United States Aikido Federation” was posted on Facebook by the USAF Women’s Coalition, now renamed Independent Coalition of USAF Women (Coalition). This is an independent group not sanctioned by the USAF. The petition has also been circulated through various social media platforms, emails, texts, private contacts, etc. The Board first learned of this petition through Facebook and was not given the opportunity to speak to the Coalition prior to the petition being circulated through social media. To this date, the Board has not received the formal petition from the Coalition.

As stated on the USAF’s website: “The USAF does not advocate, support, or practice unlawful discrimination based on age, ethnicity, gender, national origin, disability, race, size, religion, sexual orientation, or socio-economic background.”

The USAF is a rank-based organization with a structure that supports teacher-student relationships, longevity, and seniority. However, equality is expected in our behavior with one another as human beings, both on and off the mat.

Due to the nature of social media, we are aware there are many rumors and inaccurate statements being circulated. The Board feels it is important at this time to clarify some USAF policies and procedures and to address the actions the petition seeks from the USAF, as outlined below.

          A. Recognition that gender equity is a valid issue that needs exploration in the USAF through a Gender Equity Task Force.

The USAF takes violations of the USAF Code of Conduct (CoC), including acts of discrimination, very seriously. The CoC and Membership Regulations are posted on in the USAF newsletter  www.usafaikidonews.com. Recognition and acceptance of the CoC and all USAF Policies are requirements for the annual renewal process of Chief Instructors and their dojos. The CoC sets forth a notification process for grievances or concerns that take place within one’s dojo, or in the USAF community at large.

          B. Representation in USAF structures as well as USAF activities/seminars at least proportional to member population.

With respect to structure, governance of the USAF is through its Board of Directors, the Technical Committee and Yamada Sensei as USAF Technical Advisor. Day-to-day operations are handled by the Director of Operations. The USAF is a not-for-profit corporation made up of member dojos. Membership in the USAF is voluntary and in accordance with the USAF Membership Regulations and other USAF policies. The USAF, among other things:

• (i) provides its membership a pathway to attain Aikikai dan ranks;
• (ii) preserves our lineage to our teachers; and
• (iii) encourages excellence in its standards of instruction, practice and promotions

In addition, the Board and the Director of Operations have been diligently working over the past few years to provide transparency through various communications and at instructors’ meetings (e.g., at Summer Camp). The USAF also offers administrative support to Chief Instructors and dojo administrators, including platforms for information and communication.

Most importantly, the Board would like to emphasize that at its essence the USAF is a community of long-standing friends, teachers and students who love the art of aikido and spending time together, both on and off the mat.

Regarding gender equity as it pertains to USAF structure, please note:

• The Director of Operations and Assistant to the Director are women.
• The only event organized by the USAF, the USAF Summer Camp, is run solely by women.
• The Treasurer of the Board of Directors is a woman, and a woman has mostly held that position for over a decade.
• Prior to the current Secretary, the Secretary of the Board was held by women for many years.
• An advisor to the Board is a woman who also had previously been a Board member for many years.
• There have always been 1-3 women on the Board.
• Other than Yamada Sensei, the only people with direct relationships with Hombu Dojo for all USAF official business are women.
• Technical Committee will be addressed below.

activities/seminars:

USAF CAMP: USAF Summer Camp is the only seminar/camp organized and run but the USAF. We are privileged to have Yamada Sensei and Osawa Sensei teach throughout the week in addition to classes taught by the Technical Committee. There are very few classes available beyond these Shihans’ classes in proportion to the number of Chief Instructors and higher ranked instructors who attend camp. Yamada Sensei tries his best to distribute the remaining classes in a fair way from year to year. 

Here is a breakdown of classes from 2019 Summer Camp:

50% of 6^th dan women and 25% of 6^th dan men attending camp were given classes. (Note – Approximately 14% of all USAF dojos are run by women.)

Seminars: In the same way that the USAF does not interfere with the internal running of a dojo, it does not participate in a dojo’s decision to host a seminar or special class. An invitation to teach is at the sole discretion of the host dojo. This is often decided based on friendships, student-teacher relationships, convenience, budgetary considerations, or any number of factors, all of which are at the sole purview of the host dojo. The USAF only involves itself in seminars when the host dojo or invited instructors are not USAF members. The USAF does its best to notify dojos when there may be a scheduling conflict due to dates or proximity.

          C.  Removal of barriers to the advancement of women, at all levels of practice.

With respect to advancement, all USAF dojos are run autonomously and independently. Membership in the USAF requires compliance with our guidelines, including testing requirements, code of conduct, membership regulations etc.

Yamada Sensei oversees New Year’s promotions for Chief Instructors. Neither the USAF nor Yamada Sensei reviews the rank status of members within a dojo; it is the sole responsibility of the Chief Instructors to promote their students in their own dojo.

          D. A change in the Technical Committee structure to include women on the Technical Committee.

The Technical Committee is a Committee of the USAF and is required for Aikikai affiliation. As the USAF founding Shihan were contemporaries who came to the United States to spread aikido, our current TC was formed on the same premise. These are the close students of the Shihan who arrived from Japan, those who followed them and learned from them for decades and therefore bring technical and personal maturity to the USAF. The were chosen by Yamada Sensei. Their history and experience are important for maintaining the lineage of those who came before us.

TC members must be 7^th dan. However, this does not mean that all 7^th dans will be considered for the TC.

Promotion to 7^th dan requires the following:

7^th dan: Aikikai regulations require a minimum of 12 years from 6^th dan to qualify for 7^th dan. Yamada Sensei must travel to Japan to meet with Doshu personally to present 7^th dan candidates. This rank is not given freely, and may not be granted immediately after 12 years.

At this time, there are no women who are active members of the USAF who are 7^th dan.

          E. Transparency, including publication of statistics about gender in the USAF.

The USAF administration does its best to provide information to Chief Instructors. The Board does not have statistics to share, nor do we feel that gender specific information helps create a full understanding of the diverse population of our community. We do not know who is active, who has joined, or who has left a dojo on any given day. As an organization of independent dojos with different demographics, locations, schedules, fees, etc., the composition of a dojo is based on a number of variables.

While positive exchanges are encouraged amongst members regarding their experiences practicing and teaching aikido, the USAF does not have, does not collect, nor does it intend to collect information regarding members within each individual USAF dojo. We appreciate our diverse membership and all they bring to our community.

We thank those who commit their time and energy to the practice of aikido.

As quoted in Aikido Journal: “In 1955, Yoshimitsu Yamada was accepted to the Hombu Dojo uchi deshi program (live-in apprentice) at age 18. He studied directly under the founder, as well as Kissomaru Ueshiba, Koichi Tohei, Kisaburo Osawa and other legendary masters. Yamada Shihan (8th dan) came to the United States in 1964 and has been one of the most important and influential instructors and ambassadors for the art of aikido in the United States and across the globe. He is chief instructor of the New York Aikikai and chief instructor and technical director of the United States Aikido Federation, the largest aikido organization in the United States. In March 2019, Yamada Sensei sat down with Josh Gold to share his thoughts with the Aikido Journal community.”

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