Analyzing Policy Issues and Cultural Diversity

Policy Issues and Cultural Diversity Culture constitutes one of the important national resources, and is the accrued capital of the nation's continued creativity and ingenuity. It forms the storehouse of human memory and achievement, and the wellspring of innovation and uniqueness. In today's knowledge-intensive global economy, cultural capital is becoming increasingly valuable and constitutes an important social foundation as individuals in the U.S. and across the globe endeavor to understand the identities of others, whilst preserving their own unique legacy (Center for Arts and Culture, 2001).

Cultural Policy Cultural policy represents a process as well as a product, a basis for decision- and rule- making informed by values and social relationships. It connects to every major societal issue: economic stratification, international relations, education, technology, community development, and race relations (Atlas, n.d). Need for Cultural Policy Every society requires a powerful cultural life. By way of its capacity to inspire and move, culture strengthens individuals as well as develops the overall society.

Cultural policies create conditions that enable all to take part in cultural activities irrespective of the goal, which can be education, participation in creative pursuits, or experiencing culture. They allow for participation in cultural elements characterized by high standards and diversity, irrespective of which part of the nation one resides in (Cultural policy objectives, n.d). Contents of A Cultural Policy Encouraging Public Participation Vibrant cultures constantly multiply public participation opportunities.

One key goal of democratic cultural policies must be inspiring active community participation in every form of community life, including in the political arena. This implies a drastic redirection. Major federal agencies are currently directing a major part of their respective budgets to select products, like works of art or scholarship, instead of cultural creation sources.

The ensuing need to determine which end is most valuable has brought about an exaggerated and exclusive interest in public sector with doubts regarding taste, as well as a federal policy that is more intent on developing ballet and symphony markets than on engaged, active citizenry. Access to Community Activity utilities Critical to a cultural life in a democracy is access. Low-cost or free amenities for exhibitions, amateur sports, rehearsals and performances, community broadcasting, and studio work must be accessible by all.

Authorities should provide for costly equipment like sound and light systems, darkroom equipment, kilns, printing presses, and video cameras and film within community centers for use by community members. The government must fund essential services like workshops and classes, graphic design, and scenery, props, costumes, and scripts. Underutilized public buildings (e.g., government offices and schools that remain empty after hours) can serve as a community's cultural center.

Active Participation For enlivening political life, all arenas must be open for debate: public halls and schools should open their doors for community meetings; theaters should present relevant work; publications should accept and publish all citizens' views; and exhibition spaces should feature visual inputs to the discussion. Support should be provided for civic animation projects, presenting organizers and artists as community resources, who can help their neighbors employ cultural tools for expressing personal hopes and concerns (Adams & Goldbard, 1987).

Department of Cultural Development Achieving all of the above requires a shift in the national cultural apparatus. The nation requires a cabinet department for creating and implementing a responsive, proactive cultural democracy policy. This department's general objective must be stimulation of cultural diversity and vitality, constant increase of citizen participation and access, multiplication of styles and forms, and encouragement of invention, artistic freedom, and creativity. The cultural development department would manage a coordinated national policy that allows structural decentralization to the maximum possible extent.

Its direct power must be limited to those public cultural aspects best achieved at the federal level, namely, training; countrywide research; protection of cultural rights; information exchange; distribution; skills-sharing; sponsoring regional or national ventures; and being a last-resort sponsor for projects that are too controversial or experimental to win local sponsors. All else, including much of what existing federal departments/organizations already take on, must be delegated to local authorities that are more responsive.

Long-term commitment to power decentralization and encouragement of public involvement in policymaking should extend to all corners of the novel federal apparatus. This new department's purview would encompass sports and recreation, libraries, humanities and arts, electronic media, museums, international exchange, minority cultural issues, and key public education elements (Adams & Goldbard, 1987). Existing Cultural Policy and its Reach All communities have their own cultural policy, irrespective of whether the people are aware of this fact. The U.S.

culture and arts department (USDAC) exists for cultivating community interest in the areas of culture and arts and catalyzing culture and the arts in the community interest. One important way they achieve this is by treating cultural policy choices as key public concerns, and taking care not to let them be formed by accident or in the backrooms, but ensuring community involvement in deliberating, asserting and choosing community cultural values. Essentially, cultural policies are roadmaps -- they are an agreement between the public and the government/any organization.

They prove that individuals will be steered using these agreements, values, and principles. Lastly, they will hold citizens to the highest standards and influence programs (Cultural Policy, n.d). Conclusion Cultural policymaking is faced with the challenge of moving from theory to practice, and carrying a.