Man Down

One tremendous perk of my job (job #3- Canadian Crafts Federation) is being up to date on cultural happenings in our country. I gather all of this information and then distill it into a bi-weekly newsletter distributed to the provincial Crafts Councils and others. A pretty grim piece of news crossed my desk yesterday, and while I'm not usually one to rant online, this situation certainly merits some drama. 

A few days ago the Cultural Human Resources Council quietly had it's throat slit.

The CHRC supported cultural sector workers (you, me, the Executive Directors of the galleries and councils we are members of, our fellow board members, broadcasters, educators, entrepreneurs, and makers...) through training, career development and management, education, and advocacy. Their Youth Internship program paved the way for our entrance into arts organizations when we were students. Their studies helped us plan budgets and explore new markets. They developed material for teachers and businesspeople alike.

Now they are scrambling to put into place systems and people to safeguard their invaluable information and programs and help cultural workers access these resources after their end date, March 2013.

The organization who pulled the trigger on CHRC, Human Resources and Skills Development Canada, has not publicly announced their actions, nor can any information about this be found on their website. 

Please send your support to the CHRC, and if you can help in any way, contact Sue Annis at sannis@culturalhrc.ca or by phone at 613-562-1535.

If you feel so inclined, please send your rage over to HRSDC (c/o. the Honourable Diane Finley), every stinking newspaper editorial column in the country, and Prime Minister Harper's inbox (pm@pm.gc.ca, or address real mail to the Office of the Prime Minister, 80 Wellington Street, Ottawa, On, K1A 0A2). Scream about this from the top of your roof, post the info on your facebook wall, and send loving vibes to your fellow cultural sector workers. And then tighten your belt, because the next four years will be lean times indeed.