{"id":867,"date":"2016-06-06T11:13:37","date_gmt":"2016-06-06T18:13:37","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/diacritical\/?p=867"},"modified":"2016-06-07T16:20:44","modified_gmt":"2016-06-07T23:20:44","slug":"dissent-on-afta-equity-statement","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/diacritical\/2016\/06\/dissent-on-afta-equity-statement.html","title":{"rendered":"Sorry – A (Respectful) Dissent On A Well-Meaning Statement On Arts Equity"},"content":{"rendered":"

I would say based on the thousands of stories we sift through every day at ArtsJournal, diversity and cultural equity (along with funding<\/a>) are right now probably the biggest issues being talked about in the arts community. And rightly so.<\/p>\n

\"HappyNewYearFromAmericansForTheArts\"<\/a>

Janet Echelman’s Skies Painted with Unnumbered Sparks in Vancouver, BC, selected for AftA’s 2015 Public Art Network Year in Review. more<\/a><\/p><\/div>\n

It’s astonishing to see article after article documenting \u00a0inequalities in gender, race, sexual orientation and age in our cultural industries. The numbers are stark in a sector that has preached inclusivity over many decades but has clearly failed to become equitable. In this context, Americans for the Arts has released a “Statement on Cultural Equity” after an extensive year-long organization-wide process. You can read it here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

If I’m being honest though, this obviously well-meaning, painstakingly-crafted, and very earnest Americans for the Arts statement is disappointing. Not because I disagree with it, but for all the intentions – perhaps because of them, even – this product of a year of debate and study seems, in the end, an exercise in missed opportunity.<\/p>\n

I’d be inclined to read it and move on.\u00a0But Americans for the Arts asked a number of people, including me, to respond, and in the couple of weeks since its release, there have been a number of thoughtful<\/a> blog<\/a> posts<\/a>. Rather than strap on my best Canadian Polite and offer vague approval for the good intentions, I’d like to show respect by judging this effort more rigorously (or at least my version of it).<\/p>\n

Of course the usual caveats. As an older white male who has been extraordinarily lucky to be able to pursue the things that interest me, I speak from a position of privilege. So take my response in that context.<\/p>\n

My main problem is that for all the effort I don’t think this adds something new\u00a0or\u00a0helpful. For example:<\/p>\n

“To support a full creative life for all, Americans for the Arts commits to championing policies and practices of cultural equity that empower a just, inclusive, equitable nation.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Of course. No one’s going to argue with that. But okay, a place to start.<\/p>\n

Cultural equity embodies the values, policies, and practices that ensure that all people\u2014including but not limited to those who have been historically underrepresented based on race\/ethnicity, age, ability, sexual orientation, gender, socioeconomic status, geography, citizenship status, or religion\u2014are represented in the development of arts policy; the support of artists; the nurturing of accessible, thriving venues for expression; and the fair distribution of programmatic, financial, and informational resources.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Again, nothing to argue with here as a statement of principle. But here’s where cracks start to appear: if resources for supporting the arts were unlimited, then ensuring that “all people” are represented and have access to the fair distribution of resources would mean something. But because resources are scarce and decisions are hard, the issue is how you devise a system that is more fair, more equitable. Recognizing that it should be fair and equitable is by now a platitude. Explaining how it should be different or at least a pathway for how you believe will make it so is where it starts to get meaningful.<\/p>\n

And here, it seems to me, the statement gets into trouble:<\/p>\n

In the United States, there are systems of power that grant privilege and access unequally such that inequity and injustice result, and that must be continuously addressed and changed.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Of course, and not just in the United States. But in any system of allocation of attention and resources (what gets privileged) there will be winners and losers. To observe that a system is unequal and unjust is easy. It’s not meaningful unless you suggest how to get to a more equitable system and what that system might look like.<\/p>\n

We must all hold ourselves accountable, because acknowledging and challenging our inequities and working in partnership is how we will make change happen.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

So if my version of culture and your version are different, how are the inequities going to be adjudicated and by whom? If we all hold ourselves accountable but my accountable is different from yours, how are we going to reconcile the judgment of others over something we might deeply believe in? Isn’t diversity the very essence of difference? Moreover – if we’re all supposed to hold ourselves accountable, shouldn’t this be the place that Americans for the Arts holds itself accountable if it’s going to address the issue?<\/p>\n

Everyone deserves equal access to a full, vibrant creative life, which is essential to a healthy and democratic society.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Again hard to argue with the sentiment. But does every<\/em>one really deserve access? Equal access? If my participation will impinge on yours do I still deserve access? If my “full, vibrant creative life” conflicts with yours\u00a0\u00a0do I deserve equal access? And this might be heresy, but isn’t it possible we devalue what we do when we don’t don’t ask people to earn our attention in some way? Or they ours?<\/p>\n

The prominent presence of artists challenges inequities and encourages alternatives<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Not always. What about boring artists with little to say or work that affirms stereotypes? Sooo much art supports the status quo and not alternatives.<\/p>\n

At this point the statement moves on to talk about what Americans for the Arts will do to pursue equity:<\/p>\n

To provide informed, authentic leadership for cultural equity, we strive to\u2026<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n