I have just heard about your project “Art is Your Story”! What a beautiful and fitting way to use your individual and collective voices to celebrate your citizenship and that of us all.  I congratulate you all for your vision, your creativity and your civic pride!

May you all touch many.

Yours,

Albert Schultz, Artist

Honorary Doctor of Laws, Queen’s University

Pairs, trios, and groups were out in full force at Kingston’s Market Square on Sunday October 5, sharing their stories and pieces of art with passersby. Later in the day, groups could be found around town doing the same thing. Enjoy the photos below!

Celebrating Art as Everyone's Story

Chalk Drawing is Fun!

Enjoying Public Space

Word on the Street...

Image on the Street...

A 'Tripe Threat' on Princess

Arts is Your Story supporters hit the streets today in Toronto as well. Pictures below! Morgan  Jones Phillips told stories from his show, “Emergency Monologues” about being a paramedic in Toronto. He spins the wheel and tells the tale where the wheel lands. Third photo features Queen’s Drama alumni Karen Kugelmass.

I am not a person who is prone to staunch political stances. In fact, I am typically known as a young man who keeps his political opinions (much like his religion) to himself. However, with the recent developments in this national election, I feel that remaining silent would mean abandoning my duties as a citizen of a country I love.  I have so much faith in the nation that is Canada, and our identity as a people that when I feel it is at risk I can’t stand silent anymore. I have not raised my voice before over this, but I need to stand up for what I believe.

I have come to a definite conclusion in regards to the results of this national election, which was surprising for someone with as varied opinions as my own. If elected, the Liberal Party of Canada is the only party that can meet the needs of the arts community, and of our nation as a whole. I do not speak this drastically without a great deal of forethought, and I hereby promise that I will engage in intelligent discourse with anyone who does not agree with this. Stephane Dion is a leader. Having watched the debate, I was reassured to see that he embodies the personality of Canada. He is polite, does not interrupt others, and is absolutely impassioned about what he believes. His views are firm, his research and knowledge impeccable, and his integrity is without question. He believes in supporting every aspect of this country, and staunchly refuses to allow the political and social systems of our nearest neighbour to dominate our own, quite unique, culture.

The Conservative Party of Canada entered this campaign on a trail of recently broken promises, and perhaps most importantly, without a platform. For the majority of Canadians this idea is offensive bordering on insulting. For a man who refers to other political parties as having a history of being unaccountable for their actions, Harper’s Conservative’s won’t even tell us what their actions are going to be. He won’t make promises so he can’t break them. Most importantly, his political agenda is little more than a shadow that he tries to shield with attacks on Dion’s leadership (ex: notaleader.ca).  The first image to appear on the Conservative web page upon my latest visit was a crudely photoshopped picture of Dion with the caption “Not worth the risk: more Liberal debate gimmicks”. Yet during the debate Harper said little, merely sitting back to defend a spotted history with generic promises which he in no way records or guarantees. I do not lament the fact that political parties fail to keep all of their promises, times and situations change, but for a party to refuse to make any promises? This is both condescending and terrifying. It is not the democratic process that my grandparents fought for and that I have been so proud of in the past.

The New Democratic Party, under the leadership of Jack Layton, and the Green Party, led by Elizabeth May, both make a great number of promises in their election platforms. However, these promises are vague and sweeping to a degree that makes their actual achievement unlikely. Despite promising support of the arts and culture in addition to a great number of environmental and societal issues, their promises have no dollar signs listed alongside them, and no timeline for their implementation is given. There is a logical requirement placed on any responsible governing body: that they not only speak of things they wish to do, but also say when they will do them and how much these things will cost. Though their platforms are ideal, the feasibility of their promised actions cannot be judged as the respective parties give us no real information on their implementation.

The Liberal Party of Canada’s Platform is, by the typical definition, the only complete platform offered in this election. They have specific goals, and beside these goals they list the full costs, and specific timelines in which they will make these changes. Their goals are clear. Dion believes that the arts community is vital not only to Canadian identity, but also to our economy.  Dion supports Canadian judges and believes that removing house arrest will only further crowd our already over-populated prison system (the opposite of Harper’s position, as the Conservatives believe in giving life sentences to 14-year-old offenders). Dion believes that we need to support the Native American community. He believes in Green Initiatives (that are dealing with total emissions, not per unit of product like the Conservatives). The Liberal Party, and their leader Dion, recognize and research their claims, broadcasting each of their intentions to the public. There is no party more accountable than one that demonstrates that each and every one of their promises is attainable, and should they fail to make them happen they will let the blame rest solely on themselves. The Liberals are the political party with a plan for our future that is realistic, and they are willing to share it with the voting public.

Advance polls have come out, and they show the split of support as being 36% Conservative, 25% Liberal, and 19% NDP out of the top triumvirate of parties. This means that, realistically, this country is looking at a Conservative majority. The Conservative Party has refused to even produce a platform, and they are leading this electoral body by 11%. How can this be? How can this country be supporting a party that requires you to vote for them blindfolded? This is happening because the left inCanada is split. Combined, the Liberal and NDP vote leads the Conservatives by 8%. This does not matter because the fractious nature of those of us on the left, combined with Layton’s tactics of attacking both the Liberals and Conservatives mean that this vote won’t be combined. What can we do to avoid a future that will ultimately lead to Canada’s ‘american-ization’ and the crippling of the arts and culture of this great nation? Unify the left under the helm of the capable and accountable Liberal Party.

I hereby challenge the members of Canada’s arts community, as well as the rest of the voting assembly, to support the Liberal Party of Canada. Help lead the country towards a future that has been clearly outlined for us, that is realistic, and that we can hold a governing body accountable for if they fail to deliver. Vote together. End the fractiousness that has been the greatest gift the left-wing has ever delivered the consolidated right. Please, despite the cries of a ‘two-party’ system that we don’t need, protect the future of the arts and our very nation itself. If the Liberals let us down once they are in power, in four years switch your support to the party of your choice. However, right now they are the only applicant for the job of running this country that has produced a valid resume. The NDP and Green Party have claimed a number of skills without any training, and the Conservatives promise a resume once they have the job. Rest our future in the hands of the party that can lead us towards the future with our eyes open. Set aside the minute differences of the left, and unify this country and our voting electorate to reflect the goals that we have as a nation. If we fail in this, we change our country in ways that we will not be able to take back, and in ways that we certainly cannot predict.

The first step to their support of the arts begins with restoring the $44.5 million dollars recently cut from critical cultural support programs.

They plan to increase the Canadian Film and Video Production Tax Credit to 30 percent. This will allow more high-quality films to be produced, and also create more jobs in an industry that already employs over 125,000 Canadians. The total budget represented by this commitment is more than $160 million dollars.

Over the next four years, the Liberal Party of Canada will double the funding for the Canada Arts Council. This will bring its annual budget to more than $360 million dollars (an increase of $180 million). This increase will allow for even more significant investment in Canada’s artists and art institutions. In their own words: “With this investment, we are giving Canadian artists the tools they need to create exciting, vibrant products for all Canadians.”

In addition to re-storing the cuts made by the Conservative government, the Liberal Party of Canada intends to invest a further $15 million dollars for international arts promotion, and $16 million dollars in the Museum Assistance Program, which will help to safeguard our cultural heritage.

The Liberals are developing and will launch, if elected, the Canadian Digital Media Strategy which will create new high-skilled jobs in the rapidly expanding field of interactive media, thus allowing Canadians to stay at the forefront of an industry expected to be worth more than $65 billion globally in 2010.

Lastly, the Liberal Party of Canada promises to provide income-averaging for artists, which will allow the tax-system to better reflect the cyclical nature of an artists income. They believe, “This is an important tool for helping this country’s writers, artists and musicians continue to excel.”       

Stephane Dion and the Liberal Party of Canada have a clear vision of the future of the arts in Canada, and recognize both their cultural and economic necessity. Over the next four years they have specific initiatives to support the arts community in every aspect, ensuring: the future of Canadian arts institutions, our international presence, the production of Candian Fim and Television, and the support of artists on an individual level. This promised investment comes to a total of more than $600 million, and this is without factoring in the income-averaging or the Canadian Digital Media Strategy. The Liberal Party of Canada has made a commitment to the arts that has yet to be matched, or even paralleled in its specificity and realistic intentions, by the other party’s platforms.

To see the facts yourself, visit the Liberal Party of Canada’s website: www.liberal.ca

Or visit the Arts section of their platform directly at:

http://www.liberal.ca/pdf/platform/2008lp_richer_e.pdf