Cutting the Arts is a Sin, Glyn

OK, so, yesterday I went to my first protest! Because I'm an arts students and I'm all hardcore and stuff. And totally left of centre, obviously (and I mean in terms of politics as well as my state of mind.)

But people made of even sterner stuff had literally set up camp outside the VCA this past week:



















Despite the weather, they were dressed to the nines...





































...Resplendent with outrage, indignation and clever banners:





































Check it: they even cordoned off Swanston St for us and escorted us to Parliament!



















There were performances





and speeches, all in the good name of the VCA:








OMG OMG OMG I don't think you people UNDERSTAND. It's GEOFFREY RUSH, who, like, didn't even GO to the VCA (but then again, neither do I and I still care!) and he gave a super inspiring, well-thought and fairly balanced speech about his point of view which, I cannot stress, was super-mega-awesome, not to mention like heart pumping. GEOFFREY RUSH, PEOPLE, DOES NOT HAPPEN EVERY DAY.




This is the part where we dramatically slow-walked past Flinder's St Station to the theme from Chariots of Fire. The Final Countdown is now stuck in my head, because that's what the band - and the van played - as we commenced the march (it's sadly oh-so-fitting.) They also - appropriately - played R-E-S-P-E-C-T.

News segment here




























(From the free newspaper daily rag distributed on public transport)

I don't know if we saved the VCA, but we certainly brought it to a lot of people's attention, including, hopefully, Kevin Rudd and Peter Garrett. I want to believe that maybe, in some small way, we changed something, for the better of the future of the VCA.

x
JAG