One of the most prolific and talented filmmakers in Quebec has just left us. The praise was pouring in, as it should be. The one who touched millions of ours was entitled to these tender and sincere testimonies. What was my surprise to read Guy Fournier’s text “Jean-Claude Lord victim of ageism? » published on January 18 in the Montreal Journal.
We learn that this most prolific and talented filmmaker from Quebec died in need, “without pension funds like most artists”, and that he had ended up exhausting his savings. As a result, he could no longer find adequate housing.
The indigence of our artists who are advancing in age is pointed out sporadically, then we move on to something else. Thus the intolerable is perpetuated. We need to act.
These artists have educated and entertained us. They gave us access to their creation and their vision of the world, enriching our lives. Thanks to them, we showed what we are on all continents and Québec shone everywhere on the planet. The artistic creation, production and dissemination chain has given rise to cultural businesses, craft and professional sectors, generating hundreds of thousands of jobs and contributing substantially to the local economy.
The precarious status of artists and cultural workers in Quebec has been known and documented for ages. When this vulnerability affects the greatest of them, when it seizes the most hardened, it means that the evil is deep. Silence then becomes complicity.
The information shared by Mr. Fournier must not die on the soap opera. The status of our artists is a problem, a scandal. Artists have the right to a decent life and retirement. In this period full of uncertainties and questions, let’s have the courage to put everything into deliberation. Let us show compassion and generosity to explore possible solutions, of which there are many. I am thinking of an essential social safety net, specific support mechanisms and guaranteed minimum income, including at retirement age.
Given the nature of their contribution to society, our artists are entitled to it. So that they never again find themselves deprived in the last phase of their life.