Confusion reigns over arts cuts because ministers are in hiding
Regular visitors to Straight.com know that we pay close attention to arts funding.
Our arts reporter, Jessica Werb, is often ahead of the pack on this issue. Arts editor Janet Smith has also done extraordinary work.
Unfortunately, we can't answer some of the community's questions because the cabinet ministers who are responsible for recent cuts won't return calls to explain certain things.
In the aftermath of the provincial budget, I requested interviews about arts funding with Tourism, Culture and the Arts Minister Kevin Krueger, Finance Minister Colin Hansen, and Housing and Social Development Minister Rich Coleman.
Their staff couldn't be bothered to call to say there would be no interview let alone make any of the ministers available for comment.
They don't want to reveal if gaming-grant money has been clawed back from the B.C. Arts Council to ensure that multiyear grants will be honoured.
They won't explain why an industry that they trumpeted in their platform as an economic generator is now being sliced and diced.
I also requested interviews through the caucus communications with two other Liberal MLAs, Joan McIntyre and Naomi Yamamoto, to see what they think of the treatment of the arts in the recent budget.
McIntyre's constituency includes part of West Vancouver, which was designated a "cultural capital" in 2006 by the federal government. She didn't call back.
Yamamoto, MLA for North Vancouver-Lonsdale, was the longtime president of the Gordon and Marion Smith Foundation, which promotes arts for kids in her school district.
Yamamoto didn't return the call either.
NDP MLA Spencer Herbert has suggested that if people want to reverse the B.C. Liberal government's brutal cuts to the arts, they should pressure MLAs in constituencies that the B.C. Liberals narrowly won.
The B.C. Liberals are vulnerable in Vancouver-Fairview, Vancouver-Fraserview, North Vancouver-Lonsdale, Burnaby North, and Burnaby-Lougheed, to mention just five constituencies. Oh yes, the B.C. Liberals are also vulnerable in Vancouver-Point Grey under the right circumstances.
Krueger, Hansen, and Coleman have demonstrated that they don't care to explain their actions. Perhaps if the arts community increases pressure on some of their colleagues, they might learn that slashing the arts comes with a big political price.
Comments
3 Comments
Linda Lee Thomas
Sep 6, 2009 at 8:55pm
Thank You Georgia Straight for being the only newspaper who seems to care about the devastation of the Arts. Your coverage has been and continues to be excellent - intelligent -- up-to-the-minute - insightful. We in the arts are depending on you and grateful to you.
Bravo to you all and Carry On.
Beleaguered non-profit worker
Sep 7, 2009 at 9:11pm
This is only the tip of the iceberg. Although the arts community has been the most vocal, funding has been cut in other areas (environment, social), but many of these organizations have not spoken up because of fears that they will lose out on future funding opportunities. Over $1.9 billion was cut in "discretionary" provincial funding - leaving the non-profit sector with the nasty task of layoffs and reduced work weeks. Less than 1% of the provincial government workforce will be affected by layoffs, while many non-profits struggle with layoffs of 10-50% of staff.
Anthony F. Ingram
Sep 8, 2009 at 10:42pm
to Beleaguered non-profit worker:
as i posted in another blog response... let's stop calling ourselves "non-profit" and call ourselves "social-profit" organizations and workers. take control of the language, take control of our names, and take control over our funding.
it's always amazing to me what social-profit groups are able to do with such limited resources. and for this, we practically never get remunerated in the way that say... the CEO of General Motors gets remunerated for driving a company (dare i say a whole industry) into the ground.