What d’ya know … the world keeps changing. It’s May!
May Day 2011 had me thinking about the immense contribution of working people. Our work creates wealth, our labor produces the foundation of our societies. I say “we” because all artists are workers. Our collective labor transforms the world we live in and enriches people’s lives on a daily basis. Let’s look closely at how we value things, and reset the compass. Everyone prospers when society gives allworking people safe and stable lives. Artists are a huge part of that prosperity, and people are taking notice. Read how Americans for the Arts restored federal funding for arts in education!
We need bread AND roses.
Speaking of flowers, do yesterday’s events mean we can lay a wreath at the headstone of war? Can the demise of one bogeyman be the permission we need to turn and run towards the light? I hope so. Yesterday I received two emails about Afghanistan. One asked me to write a chapter for a book about theater-based projects with children in Afghanistan. The other email asked me to come back to Afghanistan to do more participatory theater. People are recognizing this moment and turning to the arts. The seeds of liberation are being planted through wildly creative and supremely hopeful projects. (Read more about such projects in my book).
A million flowers will bloom. May we protect these buds and give them a permanent home. Think freely, promote the arts, insist on creativity.