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Blog Article: Interview with Former New York Aikikai Instructor Ruth Peyser
Posted 9/07/2020 3:26pm [from Jun Akiyama]
Here is a recently published interview entitled "Interview with Former New York Aikikai Instructor Ruth Peyser: Supporting Gender Equity and the Independent Coalition of USAF Women’s Petition" that discusses Peyser's signing of a petition calling for gender equality in the United States Aikido Federation and her being subsequently "expelled" from New York Aikikai.
From the interview: "My first meeting with Yamada Sensei lasted less than a minute. He told me he was very angry that I had signed and shared the petition, and he didn’t want me teaching at his dojo. I taught at New York Aikikai for about thirty-three years. Obviously, I was extremely upset, and I wanted to talk to him about it. As I opened my mouth to say something, he told me that he didn’t want to hear a word I had to say and left the room. The following week, I received an email expelling me from the dojo."
