The We Are More campaign is a Europe wide advocacy campaign that seeks to increase the EU budget for cultural activity in the next budget cycle. Talks for that start in July and at the moment the EU budget for cultural activity is 0.05%.
Its difficult to imagine how we could have collectively under-invested in cultural activity to such an extent. This perhaps reflects the pervading lack of understanding of policy makers of the value of culture, but it could just a likely reflect the cultural communities inability to lobby effectively.
After all people and communities get culture, otherwise why do they continue to form groups, put on performances and get their children involved? Despite the vagaries of government funding and stop start policy initiatives people continue to organise cultural activity for themselves and their communities.
Is it possible that those of us who professionally represent the arts and cultural sector have neglected our duty to translate that community interest into policy that makes sense and the investment required to create the maximum return for society?
If so, there is at least evidence that we are beginning to address this issue. There are National Campaigns for the Arts in Ireland and the UK which are encouraging the arts and cultural sector to engage with politicians on a range of platforms and policies. There is a sense too that politicians and arts workers need to work more effectively together. The traditional them and us stance is gradually being replaced by a more constructive relationship.
It is a striking story that in a recent campaign in Northern Ireland in response to a draft government budget which proposed a significant cut to the arts over 5000 people wrote letters opposing the cuts - the next biggest campaign numbered letters in the small hundreds.
People do support arts and culture, and politicians probably want to do so too. Its the job of the arts and culture sector to give them the reasons to say yes.
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I think the reason for such a low percentage for cultural activity in EU budgets has got to do with more than an oversight on behalf of the politicians and the cultural sectors lack of lobbying capabilities.
ReplyDeleteIt has to do with culture. A mercantile culture that can only assess value by its financial and economic worth. A culture that will spurn notions of cultural democracy because by its definition it allows access to and participation in the creation of its own art. If you make your own art you're not as interested in purchasing others (sharing perhaps) therefore the art market is undermined.
The music industry's control of the dissemination of music has been annihilated by the internet. Anyone can record their song and post it on the internet to share with anyone else who is connected. Not one politician was involved.
Perhaps we need to begin to look at ways we can bypass the politicians rather than await their consent or policy. Seismic change is never legislated for in advance but generally follows it. The future of cultural democracy might rely on such a radical shift in our own thinking about the order of things.