It may seem odd, but a significant reason that the arts are more heavily government-subsidized in Canada is because of our proximity to the United States. Though this funding is in no way approaching that of the United States' own funding in absolute terms, on a per capita basis I am willing to assume that Canada's government funds the arts more heavily. The reason that the United States is responsible is due to its overwhelming cultural influence on Canadians (and the world, of course, but I figure Canada especially since we're right next door and tend to speak the language).
Another reason for this is that we have not yet fully defined our national identity in the same way that most other countries have done when they were founded. We're close, but it's still difficult for Canadians to pin down their own sense of national identity. As such, I believe Canadians feel that whatever culture and identity we might have forged is threatened by the cultural juggernaut of the United States.
So, Canada adopted policies affecting our mass media in order to protect the fragile Canadian identity from being washed out in a torrent of American popular culture. Thus, things like the Canadian Content laws for radio and television were born.
Generally speaking, I find that the foreign cultural events are most popular among Canadians . Rather than having our own cultural events beyond Canada Day, Remembrance Day and the Stampede, we explicitly allow for various events like Carnivale or the Chinese New Year to take a more central role.
I suppose one of the main differences between the United States and Canada is that when you move here, you aren't expected to drop your native cultures as soon as you wish to live here.
Reprisal
Port Alberni, BC
September 2002
DEC 17, 2004 07:37 AM