And That's How Sue C's It

Last week the controversies over government funding of arts and cultural events once again came to a head as the Marquee Tourism Events Program recipients were announced. I have to say, I feel slightly sorry (only slightly, though) for the politicians and civil servants administering this program, as it seems rather ill-conceived from the start. Rather than funding as many festivals and events as possible, or alternately having a very focused mandate, it must choose winners and losers from a wide variety of applicants. More so than other grant programs, applicants are winners and losers in a big way - we're talking about individual grants in the 6 and 7 figures, or in other words, grants that would make up more than 10% of an organization's yearly budget. Really, it's a no-win situation. Even the "winners" of the grants can't count on the funding continuing in future years, a supremely frustrating situation for non-profits. From what I understand, this program was considered "stimulus" and may be discontinued now that the economy is recovering.

At the core of the issue, however, is the fact that events like the Grey Cup and Edmonton Indy would be in the same funding category as the Fringe Festival and the Folk Fest. I certainly don't begrudge the former organizations receiving government funding, if in fact the goals of increased tourism and greater exposure of Edmonton are realized. But seemingly pitting arts versus sports is divisive and benefits no one. It's almost like Glee's Sue Sylvester and Will Schuester battling for limited dollars from the same school budget - but of course, we're not in high school anymore.

The sad thing is that Canada is well positioned to excel globally in both arts and sports, and both areas could use a little (or a lot) more dependable, non-politicized long-term funding. Let's recognize and acknowledge the value of each to Canada's social and economic well-being, and understand that both can prosper with the proper support.