#artifact3

Just a sample of the fun had at a White Elephant Christmas Palooza. Wear your PJs…  Bring some food, some wine, a gag gift and get ready for lots of laughs. This is one of my favorite girl group events we enjoy every year. These events are always held AFTER the new year so it doesn’t interfere with family time. We eat, drink, gossip and have a white elephant gift exchange. We draw numbers and chose the gifts at random. There is NEVER a dull moment with girls, gossip and gag gifts. 

I picked out this fan art because it is representative of the ship “MerDer”. This is arguably the most well-liked relationship by the fandom. Most of the fans love this relationship because of everything that this couple has been through, and how they have stuck with one another throughout the show. The candles represent when the couple finally decides to be together, as well as the outline of the house that they end up building together. The creator of this art used a popular scene from the show to design a work that represents this couple and what it means to them and many other fans. A large number of fans still create fan art of Derek Sheperd, even after his death in the show. The quote is from the couple, but from a different time. This photo has different details that incorporate different events in the relationship of the characters, and it is well thought out to weave them together in this art.

The 4Rs Youth Movement is an initiative designed to promote cross-cultural, face-to-face dialogue between Indigenous and non-Indigenous young people. It corresponds with the themes of engaging and inspiring youth and promoting reconciliation with Indigenous Peoples. A $398,000 contribution to the group was made by Canadian Heritage as part of Canada 150 (Government of Canada 2016: http://news.gc.ca/web/article-en.do?nid=1070919). Unlike some of the pageantry associated with the Royal Tour, 4Rs is a genuine example of rhetoric matching reality with respect to reconciliation. However, this may be because of its origins in civil society rather than the bureaucracy. Interestingly, 4Rs offers a large variety of programs including delivering training, hosting workshops, and hosting general gatherings. It also engages young people by letting them play an active role in steering the conversation, which contrasts with the hierarchy present in the bureaucracy. The funding of such groups can also be understood in the context of neoliberalism: rather than using limited resources to emulate an existing service offered in civil society, governments can instead invest in these groups.

Secret Path is an interesting artifact because, while it is not an official expression of Canada 150, it has been tied to the theme of reconciliation with Indigenous Peoples in advance of celebrations (Globe and Mail 2016: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/gord-downie-cries-as-afn-honours-him-for-work-telling-story-of-first-nations-boy/article33218309/). It tells the story of Chanie Wenjack, a boy who died running away from a residential school. This artifact can be contrasted with the Liberal government’s attempt to use the Royal Tour to demonstrate reconciliation, as it is a direct acknowledgement of the brutality of Canada’s residential schooling system. However, it also raises questions of allyship. The CBC article linked praises Downie for using his status as an artist to tell the story, but it remains important for these stories to emerge for Indigenous Peoples as well. While dialogue and acknowledging the truth is an important step in reconciliation, it is important that events are not appropriated and reinterpreted. While this does not seem as if it was an issue for Secret Path, care should be paid to avoid this potential issue. This artifact is thematically similar to the 4Rs movement (artifact nine), which seeks to facilitate dialogue between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Canadians.

I found this protest to be a very elegant way of leveraging the large media coverage surrounding the Royal Tour. By embedding the protest within the event, there was likely more media coverage than there would have been for a more traditional protest. As such, the rhetoric-reality gap that could have gone unnoticed by the public was clearly presented. Similar tactics could be used to protest other rhetoric-reality gaps where actual policy does not match the brand or image that the Liberal government is trying to promote. While it may not result in a change in policies, it could influence public opinion and highlight issues that might go unnoticed by the general public. This artifact is related to artifact eight, Gord Downie’s Secret Path project. Both artifacts speak to the theme of reconciliation, though Secret Path tells the story of a boy who died running away from the residential school system rather than presenting a sanitized image that presents “nostalgic recollections of pasts filled with harmonious relationships” with Indigenous Peoples (Adese 2012, 485). The reality is presented, rather than the rhetoric.

This artifact is significant on a personal level for multiple reasons. As a public service employee, the values articulated here reverberate throughout the public service and will likely affect my work in one way or another. Given that the values promoted are aligned with Liberal values, the ostensible non-partisan bureaucracy is being used to promote a particular political brand. Alex Marland previously warned about the implications of political branding: it has a “tightening grip” on civil servants who are supposed to work on the public’s behalf (2016, xxiv). Rather than implementing a government’s agenda, public servants play a performative role in the promotion of a political party’s projected image. While I find that the core themes are agreeable, consideration must be paid to alternate visions of Canadian values that exist within a diverse country. If this is not done, then the public service risks siding with the governing party over the interests of the citizens (Nimijean 2005, 39). By not including dissenting voices, a lopsided image of Canada, one amenable to the governing party of the day, is presented, possibly alienating large swathes of the country. Overall, this artifact highlights the relationship between the bureaucracy and the governing party, along with the issues that can arise. Namely, this refers to the bureaucracy being complicit in promoting rhetoric over substantive policy, with actual policy consequences being ignored in favour of the image.

Daddy Yankee. Although it may sound ridiculous, this Puerto Rican artist was a big part of my childhood, particularly because his song “Gasolina” was played at nearly every party I went to where Hispanics were present. The opening beat of the song made everyone in the room freeze for just a second, before launching into an aggressive and difficult to understand rap. Now, to be clear, I do not identify with the lyrics of the song itself, because, well, they don’t make any sense, and to this day I have no idea what they mean. Watch the lyric video above and you’ll see what I mean. Basically, the girl he’s with likes gasoline and he wants some more gasoline. Maybe it’s a metaphor for something. Anyway, this song instilled a sense of the Hispanic community within me. In those moments, when everyone in the room was just singing and dancing together, because everyone knew the words, I was filled with an indescribable sense of belonging. My friends at school wouldn’t have understood, but there at those parties, I felt I was exactly where I needed to be; with people who shared me background and all the little things that came along with it. Daddy Yankee’s ridiculous song provided me with a sense of community and with that came a deeper appreciation of my background.

Oakes, Jeannie, and Martin Lipton. "History and Culture: Wrestling with the Traditions of American Education." Teaching to Change the World. Third ed. Boston: McGraw Hill, n.d. 35-50. Print.