{"id":16904,"date":"2015-11-03T10:32:10","date_gmt":"2015-11-03T15:32:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/fass\/?p=16200"},"modified":"2024-08-09T07:42:33","modified_gmt":"2024-08-09T11:42:33","slug":"the-power-of-the-arts-national-forum-2015-sustaining-social-change","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/fass\/2015\/the-power-of-the-arts-national-forum-2015-sustaining-social-change\/","title":{"rendered":"The Power of the Arts National Forum 2015: Sustaining Social Change (by Brian Foss)"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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\n The Power of the Arts National Forum 2015: Sustaining Social Change (by Brian Foss)\n <\/h1>\n \n \n <\/header>\n\n <\/div>\n\n <\/div>\n\n <\/div>\n<\/section>\n\n
\"Wayne
Wayne Tenant of the Imani Gospel Singers performs at PoA 2014. (Roussakis Photography)<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

The recent federal election campaign was fought around a number of issues. These included everything from the middle class to refugees; from corporate tax rates to national security; from the economy to greenhouse gases; and from marijuana to the clothing choices of visible minorities. But one thing that was absent from almost all candidates\u2019 debates at the local as much as at the national level was sustained discussion about the arts. It\u2019s true that the platforms of all of the major parties had proposals to preserve, expand or in various ways change the relationship between the arts and the federal government. And yet, with historical predictability, the arts failed to establish themselves as a significant issue for most voters. Broad public opinion applauds the arts as \u2018representing humanity at its best\u2019. But, really, do the arts actually matter to us?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"What
What can the arts help change? Carleton’s River Building, PoA 2014. (Roussakis Photography)<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

A frequent way of saying \u201cYes\u201d to that question is to point to the arts as drivers of local, provincial and national economies. The arts\u2014and there is indeed plenty of solid evidence to support this\u2014inject large amounts of cash into the Canadian economy as a whole. Studies repeatedly tell us, for example, that attendance at professional arts events outnumbers attendance at professional sports events. Small wonder, then, that defenders so often justify requests for government and corporate support by arguing that the arts directly and indirectly bolster the economy. The arts, in other words, make sense in a tangibly and, above all, measurably practical way.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Jean-Daniel
Jean-Daniel Lafond and the Right Honourable Micha\u00eblle Jean participate in group activities at PoA. (Roussakis Photography)<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

True though this claim is, it\u2019s also a bit of a canard. If the arts can be said to have an overarching <\/span>raison d\u2019\u00eatre<\/em> it is much more likely to have to do with human expression, achievement and development than with the happy sound of cash registers. Creating or enjoying art, in any of its many and diverse media, makes us better, more socially aware and more empathetic people. It helps us to reach out across ethnic, age, class and gender lines and thus build stronger communities. Though sometimes portrayed\u2014falsely\u2014as a frivolous playground for self-obsessed elite groups who have more money than sense, the arts would be much less central than they are to human existence if they did not speak directly to even the most marginalized groups. These are groups that are often defined, by themselves and by others, as being on the edges of the social contract. For groups such as these the arts can be a lifeline that helps them not only to preserve <\/span>identity, but also to occupy a vital role within the larger social matrix.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Savannah
Savannah Simon at PoA 2014. (Roussakis Photography)<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

It was this firm belief about the individual and social value of the arts that resulted in Carleton University and the Micha\u00eblle Jean Foundation joining forces in 2013 to hold the first Power of the Arts National Forum, and to stage that event again in 2014 and now in 2015. Power of the Arts surveys how individuals, community groups, businesses, and various levels of government can and do marshal the arts to make Canada a place where everyone matters equally and where everyone can use the arts both to express themselves and to connect themselves to others. The 2015 National Forum will be held at Carleton University from November 6th<\/sup> to 8th<\/sup>. During those three days representatives from across the country will discuss best practices, and will grapple with the challenges of solidifying a national network of those who use the arts on a daily basis as peaceful weapons of mass construction to improve lives and strengthen communities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

– Brian Foss (Co-Chair, Power of the Arts 2015 National Forum)<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Young
Young delegates at the Power of the Arts. (Roussakis Photography)<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Learn more about the Power of the Arts National Forum: Sustaining Social Change <\/a><\/h3>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The recent federal election campaign was fought around a number of issues. These included everything from the middle class to refugees; from corporate tax rates to national security; from the economy to greenhouse gases; and from marijuana to the clothing choices of visible minorities. But one thing that was absent from almost all candidates\u2019 debates […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[52,90,154],"tags":[155],"class_list":["post-16904","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-events","category-fass-news","category-power-of-the-arts","tag-power-of-the-arts-2015"],"acf":{"cu_post_thumbnail":false},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/fass\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16904","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/fass\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/fass\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/fass\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/fass\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=16904"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/fass\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16904\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":34209,"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/fass\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16904\/revisions\/34209"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/fass\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=16904"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/fass\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=16904"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/fass\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=16904"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}