The first issue of Green Left was dated February 18, 1991 and it was introduced like this: “This is the first issue of Green Left. Many individuals made this issue possible by writing articles, letters, poems, drawing cartoons, taking photographs, designing graphics and layout.
“But there is room for many more people to become part of the GL team. And there is room for you too!
“The broader the range of people who contribute to GL, the better it will be…”
Soon, it will be 30 years since that first issue came out and, from this vantage point, we can truly say this unique project has been the work of very many people from all around the world.
With the rise of new digital media platforms, the room for people to become part of the GL team also expands.
Today, there is more room for people to get involved though our expanding multimedia sections, such as video and podcasts.
As GL co-editor Pip Hinman pointed out in the recent podcast “Thirty years of people-powered media”, everyone is a latent journalist in the digital age. Most people are carrying smartphones with the capacity to photograph, view and record the events they witness.
Another point made in the introduction to GL’s first issue introduction was that this is “a paper by and for the green and progressive movement”.
“We would like it to reflect the movement in action and in discussion. We want to reflect the controversies and the concerns as well as the achievements and celebrations. Your input could help us do this better.”
A recent good example of how GL continues to do this was around Invasion Day.
GL reported on the building of the protests, under the challenging conditions of the COVID-19 pandemic, and the rise of arbitrary police powers to suppress protests. We advertised the details of the rallies and marches that took place all around the country, and then became one of the first media to publish photographs and video of the protests on our website and on social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.
The very first episode of the Green Left show — in podcast format and in video on YouTube — focused on Invasion Day with interviews with Gunnai Gunditjmara and Djab Wurrung woman and Greens Senator Lidia Thorpe, Yoorgabilya woman from the Whadjuk Noongar Nation, Marianne Mackay and Gumbaynggirr Dunghutti Bundjalung woman Elizabeth Jarrett. If you haven’t listened or watched this show yet, please do.
GL thanks everyone who helped make our Invasion Day coverage possible. But generating content is only one way you can become part of the GL team.
We need your help in getting GL to more people. You can help by sharing, reposting or commenting on our articles on social media. If everyone reposted just one article each issue it would help with our rankings on social media and increase the number of people who see GL and become supporters.
We also need help distributing GL and raising funds to keep this unique project going. Get in touch if you can take a small bundle of or know of an outlet that would take a few hard copies each week.
You could make a donation or become a supporter from as little as $5 a month for yourself or a friend.