TORONTO – With none of the three major parties articulating much about their plans for the cultural sector (not even the NDP), ACTRA’s performers tried Wednesday to inject themselves into the election news cycle.
Among the members of ACTRA, the Canadian actors union, taking part in a Toronto press conference were Wendy Crewson, Richard Hardacre, Dan Lett, Miriam McDonald, Colin Mochrie, Cara Pifko, Karl Pruner, Fiona Reid, Wayne Robson, Sonja Smits, Julie Stewart, and R.H. Thomson.
As usual, they were raising “the alarm during this election about the threat to Canada’s cultural sovereignty,” says the press release.
"It is our culture that defines us as a nation – it is what makes us who we are. Unfortunately, Canadians are overwhelmed by Hollywood content from American broadcasters; they’re dumping their product into Canada,” said Crewson. “We’re being culturally integrated into the U.S. and our politicians are not doing anything about it. Our next government needs to take immediate action.”
The actors spoke of their concerns about “the devastating decline of Canadian drama programming on our television screens and the lack of Canadian films in our movie theatres,” adds the release.
They also raised “the alarming potential for foreign ownership of Canadian airwaves and the need for increased long-term funding for Telefilm, the Canadian Television Fund and the CBC.”
"U.S. programming dominates our private broadcasters’ schedules and Canadian drama is disappearing from our own TV screens. We’re asking politicians to tell us that they will direct the CRTC to impose both drama content and spending requirements on private broadcasters so that Canadians can see our own diverse culture on our screens," said R.H. Thomson.
Culture is a $26 billion dollar industry that provides more than 700,000 direct jobs for Canadians, says ACTRA.
However, with items like health care, the military, sovereignty and others considered far more important, it’s hard for the TV industry to insinuate itself into the consciousness of voters and candidates. The fact that none of the three main party’s platforms this time around seem to even address culture shows the level of importance placed on it in Ottawa.
"There are less than two weeks left in this federal election campaign and we know very little about the parties’ plans on cultural issues," said Crewson.
"Canadians deserve to see the parties’ cultural planks before we let them lead us down a path of no return," said Thomson. "And we’re asking Canadians to vote for the party and candidates who are most committed to taking action to give our country a strong, vibrant and independent culture."
