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What the Canadian and Worldwide Governments Can do
The Horrific practice of anyone (and particularly by employers/funders who control the money we need to survive) expecting any Artist (or anyone)
of any diversity, to provide proof/justification of who we are, in the form of any assessments, or other documents about our specific diversities,
must be stopped immediately!!!
This practice creates and condones an actual hierarchy of human value, worth, and privacy rights in society. It also supports a belief that the
dominant culture, including employers and funders, can expect any Artist, of any diversity, to have to provide actual documentation, proving their
own specific identity (a.k.a. Categorization and Worth) to those in power.
It is also highly noteworthy that this happens the most, to Artists of Diverse Abilities, and to the Aboriginal Communities in Canada, two of the
least economically powerful communities living here.
Has this practice ever worked in a constructive and healthy way, in our World’s History, anywhere???!!!
The amount of money which is given to Artists from funders - and particularly to Artists who are kept at the so-called “emerging” level, due to
never-ending, exclusion from the job market, for reasons of Diversity - is not in any way close to the cost of living, or of buying supplies to
make our art. This needs to be re-assessed and updated immediately.
You can set up direct funding right from the government, such as through establishing a “People of Diverse Abilities and the Arts Department,”
just as you already have for sports.
You can also recognize Artists of Diverse Abilities as Communities which are a vital part of the mosaic of Canada, and make us eligible for
separate funding, directly from the Heritage Ministry.
You can also set up direct funding for Independent Artists of Diverse Abilities in all of the above, and in more places within all of the levels
of government, including not just continuing to solely or mainly fund, organizations and charities. Independent Artists make less money than
anyone else. You can double that statement for Independent Artists of Diverse Abilities, and other marginalized, Diverse Artists.
You can ensure that Market Value, Respectful, Payment is always made, and made directly to the Artists, and not through third party event organizers,
curators, project hosts, etc. at all fests, etc. whether the Artist is unionized or not.
You can ensure that the Artist is informed directly from the head of an event/ festival etc. and in writing, exactly how much they are being paid,
right on the Call For Artists ad, and before they even go to all the work of applying for a job. In this way, everyone will know up front, how much
the Artist is really being paid for their work.
Artists are not paid at all for many festivals and events, such as Culture Days. They are barely paid, and not even enough to cover our project
creation costs, for most other festivals such as Nuit Blanche. This practice needs to be stopped.
We are also unlike most other career areas, being charged just to apply for jobs by arts organizations. This practice needs to be stopped.
Can you name any other Professional Career where a worker is told, “We will give you a workspace, and then you will work for us for free???!!!”
The Canadian and other governments need to start ensuring that Artists of population proportional diversities, are being hired, cast, invested in,
and funded by direct and arm’s length funders, sponsored by big businesses through their community sponsorship programs, and included by all arts
organizations and independent artists, in their festivals and events.
Employment Equity is the law in Canada and in many other places, and it is way overdue for you to ensure that this starts to actually happen for
Artists of Diverse Abilities, and other Diversities. Right now Employment Equity is just words on a page.
You can also ensure that Independent Artists receive an equal percentage of all of the above, and not just the organizations and groups.
Taxpayers, Voters, Customers, Clients, and Audiences are People of all Diversities, and they want to see art which is Inclusive of Everyone!
People of Diverse Abilities include those who have survived illnesses, injuries, or who have ongoing medical conditions, as well as a myriad of other
Diverse Abilities, both Visible and Invisible. We actually Represent about 50% of the Population. The rest of the population is close to/knows at
least one Person from our Diverse Communities, often without even realizing it.
You need to set up third party places where Artists can immediately go, to file complaints which will be investigated in a timely way, whenever they
face discrimination/harassment by any funder, festival, business, or arts organization in Canada.
Internal investigations by the actual perpetrators of these illegal acts, which is where Artists currently have to go to file complaints, are
unethical, illegal, and probably never result in the Artist’s rights and needs being met. Thus, Artists usually just end up being further violated,
excluded and black listed from work and funding, whenever they come forward and file complaints with the sources of their abuse. If they don’t file
complaints, their perpetrators continue to win.
Auditable, statistical reports should be mandatory from everyone, from our largest fests to the smallest arts organizations, and any places or Artists
given government funding, showing a specific list of all applicants/Artist submissions, and of all of the people hired, or whose work is selected. In
this way, proof of population proportional hiring from all communities, (inclusive of Independent Artists, Crew and Staff, Interns and Volunteers of
Diverse Abilities, who are emerging and established) as well as sponsoring, funding, and selection for screenings and performances will become the
new, walk the talk standard of expectation.
New Employment Equity policies must be created, which are actually practiced in all of the above areas of the arts, as well as within unions and
professional associations. Most Artists of Diverse Abilities are never paid enough, or given enough work, to even be able to join unions or professional
associations.
Countless numbers of Canadian and Worldwide Artists of Diverse Abilities, are forced to live on Government Economic Assistance, which is inadequate to
live on, and which leaves no money for artistic creation. Thus, their Valuable Artistic Voices are SILENCED. This is an Invaluable Loss to our Canadian
and Worldwide societies.
In most cases, government and other funders have not updated your funding, to be anywhere near reflective of the cost of living, or travelling to perform,
especially in larger cities or Internationally. It is also not enough to cover the costs of artistic creation, both in terms of working to complete artistic
submissions, as well as the cost of making the art which we are proposing to you.
Workers in most fields get cost of living and materials increases. Artists deserve them as well!
In most cases, the odds of getting funding are so low, and there are so many applicants, that it is not even worth our taking the time to play Roulette with
our own careers to apply. We also lose valuable creation time, every time we take a shot at applying for funding, knowing the poor odds of getting it. I
work in many mediums. I lost a whole year once, just trying to get funding by filling in those immensely, time consuming forms and creating portfolios.
After that, I quit trying, because it never worked.
You need to obtain and set up funding which is adequately proportionate to the number of Artists out there, trying to get paid work. You need to ensure
that every diversity gets this funding, and in fair proportions.
The government needs to conduct multi-medium, barrier free, surveys of Artists of Diverse Abilities (and other Diverse Artists, including Womyn of all ages)
in Canada, to find out from all of Our Combined Expertise, what is needed to create 100% Inclusion and Employment Equity, to take us out of our usually poverty
level incomes for our art.
If you want to know how to solve any problem, go out into the diverse communities which are being damaged/destroyed by them, and ask these lifelong experts
what to do. Then apply what you learn to taking real and overdue actions, to achieve 100% Inclusion and Equity.
By the way, this process of going out, and asking, and using multi-medium methods to survey the communities affected, can also be applied to resolving the
Horrific Injustices Happening to our Aboriginal and African Canadian Communities, and to Completely Overhauling “Our” police system, just to name a few other
examples. It can also be used to help any other Diverse Communities, including Girls, Youth, Seniors/Elders, and Womyn.
The world is watching us, so let’s make sure that they start to see something that is 100% Inclusive, Mutually Respectful at all times, and Inspiring!
See also my “Introduction to the Diverse Abilities Panel Project” film.
