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Intro:
Recent events in Canadian politics have shocked the artistic sector in Canada. The conservative party of Stephen Harper attacked the arts and culture sector by cutting funds to some major art programs in the country. Art has played an important role in the development of societies around the world. Everything from social structure and religion to politics and military was reflected in various forms of art; from painting and sculpture to theatre and dance. Ancient Egyptians build pyramids and had symbolic depictions of deities. Ancient Greeks, the fathers of democracy, were the masters of pottery, sculpture as well as architecture and painting. In ancient times art was not isolated from science, philosophy and of course politics. Everyday political, social, military and economical affairs were reflected in the arts, and vice versa. Artists were the thinkers, and thought provokers of the culture. In the Renaissance artists were synonymous with progress, invention and liberalism. They were the builders and reinforcers of cultural value and tradition. Modern day is seeing a variety of art forms that reveal the culture that art is produced within. Canada is a country rich in history, traditions and multiculturalism. It is important to sustain and develop the art sector in Canada in order to maintain and “voice” Canadian culture and identity. Moreover, the art industry in Canada not only improves the cultural fabric of the country, it also showing significant revenue to the government. The Harper Government funding cuts to the arts and culture sector is an unjustified act of censorship. Underfunding of Arts in Canada will hinder the development of values and unity in Canadian culture and Identity as well as hinder freedom of exp...

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...ased revenues to the country from these artistic fields. A lot of Canadian-made content was cancelled on the air. Art, being a strong tool in creating and maintaining Canadian values, traditions and history is undervalued by the government, despite the socio-economic benefits. The funding cuts could potentially slowly eliminate cultural diversity in Canada, leaving place for American content and essentially a way of life. Is that what the conservatives want? Of course not every artist in Canada is an engine of progress. Many artistic trends will not contribute to the development of Canada. However isolating the funding to such important sectors as the arts and culture will deprive the entire cultural machine of progressing. It is clearly time to reassess what we value as Canadians, what we invest in, what books we read, what films we watch and what art we welcome.

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