This month we have decided to participate in Worldwide Aids Day, or WAD, as it is more commonly known. Sites on the web have been invited to join in "A Day without Graphics." To show our support for AIDS research, and our sympathy for its many victims, we will be blacking out our graphics on Dec. 1st, and providing month-long links to areas that provide further information and support. We are proud to be able to add our little magazine to the long list of sites that will be participating around the world. There is a wonderful feeling that comes with joining such an action.
Like most people, we all have a smattering of awareness about AIDS. We know where it comes from, what causes it, and how to help prevent it, but I have had no actual contact with anyone who has been stricken with this deadly and misunderstood disease. Aside from the occasional small gifts to charity, there was little opportunity for us to feel as if we were making any difference. When we stumbled across the announcement regarding "A Day without Graphics" we jumped at the chance to take part. The concept was one that touched me deeply. A network of sites, around the globe...people who did not know each other..showing support for people they have never met, who's problems are not just their own, but the world's.
The insular nature of electronic communication has often discouraged me. It is hard to feel humanity through the ether. The idea of connecting to the world, of being able to share ourselves with each other without the constraints of time or distance was what inspired me to launch Seeker to begin with. But sitting in front of my keyboard, collecting submissions and writing articles, I was more than once overwhelmed with a feeling of isolation, of uncertainty. Would the web truly make a difference? Would we find each other? Would it enhance our understanding of others and of the world we all live in? The web belongs to all of us, and we can express ourselves as openly as we care to. Would we use it constructively, informatively, in a spirit of shared humanity, as well as recreationally and financially? Was anybody really listening? Some days it didn't seem so. But this month, I am filled with hope again. Our thanks to Victoria Edwards, the folks at The Land of Awes, and Cyberzine for bringing "A Day without Graphics" to our attention, and shoring up our faith in the power of the link to make a difference. You have given us a Christmas gift beyond value by allowing us to participate. The staff and I offer you, our readers, the same gift. Write a letter, read an article..expand your awareness of your world by checking out some of the links below. And from all of us at Seeker, a holiday filled with peace, joy and safety for you and yours.
Denise Ruiz
Editor - Seeker Magazine