Backlash!

Drawing by Ehren Salazar

This week, libraries across Canada are celebrating the freedom to read week.  They’re calling attention to the significant role that intellectual freedom plays in a democracy, and they’re asking Canadians to, “Reaffirm their commitment to intellectual freedom, which is guaranteed to them under the Charter of Rights and Freedoms” [1].  If you find yourself wandering around in the Olympic crowds, you can stop into the central branch of the Vancouver Public Library and visit a display of books that have been embroiled in censorship battles.  Next to the books is a pile of pamphlets that describes the role libraries play in combatting censorship.  It also tells us that intellectual freedom applies to exhibits too.  After this, you may make your way down to the exhibits that have been set up in and around the building for the Cultural Olympiad.  Once there, you might ask yourself, “Did the organizers of the Cultural Olympiad get the pamphlet?”

At the behest of the IOC, VANOC, and the rest of the Olympic industry, each artist participating in the Cultural Olympiad had to sign a contract that restricts their intellectual freedom.   The contract states:

“The artist shall at all times refrain from making any negative or derogatory remarks respecting VANOC (the organizing committee), the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Games, the Olympic movement generally, Bell and/or other sponsors associated with VANOC.”

Maybe Ron Terada’s contribution to the Cultural Olympiad puts it all into ironic perspective. It's located at the southern entrance of the Vancouver Public Library and it's featured below.

Whether or not Terada intended it, this work embodies the contradictions of the Cultural Olympiad.  While the Cultural Olympiad is said to be a “celebration of contemporary imagination” [2], every participating artist has to make sure they don’t use their imagination to express concerns about the very real skeletons in the closet of the Olympic industry.  Evidently, the words don’t fit the picture.

Some artists may not have realized what they were signing, some artists may not have been aware of the economic, social, and political problems surrounding the Olympics, some may have wanted to say something, and others probably wouldn’t.  While it’s difficult to understand why well known artists, who have had the courage to speak out in the past, would sign this contract; lesser known artists may have found the exposure too important to pass up. One should not have to chose between exposure and free speech.  Here we see an overarching issue--artists are unified by freedom of expression. Taking that away undermines the work of every artist participating in the Olympiad, and the greater need for intellectual freedom in a democracy.  If this is what underlies the Cultural Olympiad, precisely what culture is this Olympiad cultivating?

With that in mind, I’d like to talk about what you’re not seeing at the Cultural Olympiad.  You’re not seeing artists who paid very close attention to the contract and refused to forfeit their right to free speech.  You’re also not seeing artists that have made an explicit stand against the IOC, VANOC, and the Olympic industry in general.  Let’s take a look at three artists who took this stand.

Musician Carey Mercer (Frogman/Swan Lake) was outraged by the demands outlined in the Cultural Olympiad contract, and he declined participation.  He wrote an article to draw attention to the censorship clause, noting that there was a lot to criticize Olympic organizers about.  He mentioned the $900 million dollar security bill that the taxpayers of BC had to pick up and how VANOC couldn’t live up to its promise of providing affordable housing.  He also argued that, “When artists are not allowed to critique their government, or the governing agency that endows them with grants and funding, then what they are asking for is nothing more than propaganda” [3]

Another artist that voiced his concerns regarding the Cultural Olympiad is Vancouver's poet laureate, Brad Cran.  He declined participation in the Cultural Olympiad two days before the Olympics began. One of the reasons he bowed out was that he would be unable to read the poem he had chosen.  Cran describes how the theme of equality was chosen by Cultural Olympiad organizers, as they decide which themes artists are allowed to explore.  Cran thought it would be fitting to read his poem, “In Praise of Female Athletes Who Were Told No." Since you have to sign the contract to participate, the contract would have firmly excluded this poem, and it was not to be. On his blog, he outlined several other reasons why he declined to participate, including the organizer's decision to ignore Cran's suggestion regarding the inclusion of Canadian poets in the Olympiad.

Finally, I’d also like to talk a little bit about musician and writer, Matthew Good.  He pointed out that the Cultural Olympiad was never geared toward long lasting support of artists in Vancouver, as it failed to create the infrastructure required to sustain local artists.  He has also written extensively on the highly problematic nature of hosting the Olympic games, and started writing about this prior to Vancouver winning the bid.  I urge you to read his work on the Olympics, which can be found here.

It’s important to remember that the Cultural Olympiad was designed to silence and shut out critical viewpoints.  As such, it has become obvious that the Cultural Olympiad placates the interests of the IOC, VANOC, and the rest of the Olympic industry.  When you’re strolling in and out of the Cultural Olympiad in Vancouver, keep your eyes and ears open.  Notice the silenced viewpoints and notice the artists who refused to participate in the Olympiad.  What you don’t see and hear is as important as what you do see and hear.

In the meanwhile, I'll leave you with a photograph that is on display at the Olympic Tent Village downtown.  Neither the photograph nor the demonstration fits the Cultural Olympiad's criteria. Instead, they stand in direct defiance of it.

Poster by Jochi featured at the Olympic Tent Village.  Organizers of the Tent Village are trying to draw attention to homelessness in Vancouver, which has trippled since the Olympic bid was won.  They also hope to draw attention to the broken promises made by VANOC, and the provincial and civic governments, to build affordable housing as part of Olympic development.

[1] Freedom to Read official website

[2] Vancouver 2010 Cultural Olympiad Official Website

[3] Carey Mercer Op-Ed at Stereogum.com

At the Opening Ceremony of the 2010 Olympic Games, spectators watched as nearly 3,000 athletes marched into BC Place.  Among the spectators were Canadian soldiers and their families, enjoying the ceremony at the Canada House.  Thousands of miles away, in Kandahar, Canadian soldiers had also tuned in for the festivities.  Cutting between images of the Canada House and Kandahar, CTV commentary reminded us of the spirit of peace that embodies the games.  No matter though, the very next day, the largest NATO offensive of the Afghan war was launched.  Operation Moshtarak brought fifteen thousand troops to the regions of Marjah and Nad Ali.  By Sunday, five children had died when misguided rocket fire hit their homes.

Yesterday, antiwar protestors took to the streets to remind us that Olympic peace sentiments fall apart in the face of relentless warfare.  Marching down the streets of Vancouver, the protestors yelled out this question over and over, “Where is that Olympic Truce?”  The words floated through onlookers and bounced off of the Sears Building wall, where the latest Olympic coverage was being projected.  The protestors touched on many of the issues that have been brought forward by other protest groups over the last couple of days.  For a well written summary of these issues, Jules Boykoff's article for the Guardian is worth the read.  Yesterday, though, the protestors also drew some comparisons between the use of public money to fund the Olympics and the use of public money to fund war, “Build homes not games, build homes not bombs!”

In the face of these connections, it’s fitting that the protest made it’s final stop at the tent city that was erected on an empty lot, at Hastings and Abott, earlier in the day.  It's main purpose is to draw attention to the housing crisis in BC. The land is currently under VANOC’s control for the Olympic games and is a strong reminder of broken promises by the committee.  Over the past ten years, VANOC made numerous promises to build social housing but completed a meager fraction of what was promised.  Today, there are still over 3,000 homeless people in Vancouver and about 15,000 homeless people in BC.

If the Olympic spirit is ever going to mean something beyond an illusive nicety, the IOC’s exploitation of this spirit needs to be addressed.  Relatedly, bandying about peace slogans as part of the Olympic fabric doesn’t bring lasting peace.  Actually, it didn’t even bring an attempt at peace.

Today, the Women's Memorial March will take place in down-town Vancouver, where it has taken place the last 19 years.  Despite being asked to change the route of the memorial march for the Olympics, organizers will attempt to continue as planned.  This route is integral to the memorial as it follows a path to the sites where women have gone missing or have been found murdered.  The organizers of the march posted this important message on their website:

“At noon, we gather at the Carnegie Community Centre Theatre, 401 Main Street (corner Hastings, Vancouver) where family members speak in remembrance. At 1 pm, the march takes to the streets and proceeds through the Downtown Eastside, with stops to commemorate where women were last seen or found; speeches by community activists at the police station; a healing circle at Oppenheimer Park around 3 pm; and finally a community feast at the Japanese Language Hall.

In January 1991 a woman was murdered on Powell Street in Vancouver. Her name is not spoken today out of respect for the wishes of her family. This woman’s murder in particular was the catalyst that moved women into action. Out of this sense of hopelessness and anger came an annual march on Valentine’s Day to express compassion, community, and caring for all women in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside, Coast Salish Territories.

Nineteen years later, the march continues to honour the lives of missing and murdered women. Increasing deaths of many vulnerable women from the DTES still leaves family, friends, loved ones, and community members with an overwhelming sense of grief and loss. Over 3000 women are known to have gone missing or been murdered in Canada since the 1970s. Last year, the United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women issued this statement: “Hundreds of cases involving aboriginal women who have gone missing or been murdered in the past two decades have neither been fully investigated nor attracted priority attention.”

Please respect the memorial march and the leadership of those organizing it. This event is organized and led by women in the DTES because women, especially Indigenous women, face physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual violence on a daily basis.  This is a memorial not a protest; it is a deeply emotional time for family members and women affected especially in Vancouver’s DTES. We ask that you please do not bring your banners, flags, or leaflets as the Women’s Memorial March carries five banners only to honour the women.

The February 14th Women’s Memorial March is an opportunity to come together to grieve the loss of our beloved sisters, remember the women who are still missing, and to dedicate ourselves to justice.  Please join us (all genders welcome) and we thank you for your support of the Women’s Memorial March.”

Today, memorial marches will also take place in Toronto, Winnipeg, Calgary, Edmonton, Sudbury, London, Montreal, and Victoria.  They will also honor the lives of missing and murdered women in Canada and draw attention to continuing and systematic violence against women.