The Stage

Annual Equity conference to address censorship of arts

Published Tuesday 17 May 2005 at 14:05 by Jeremy Austin

Equity’s annual representative conference will open with a debate on censorship and how to tackle it in the wake of religious opposition to shows such as Behzti in Birmingham and Jerry Springer - the Opera.

Delegates attending the event, due to be held this weekend in Belfast, will debate two motions, one from the Welsh National Committee and one from the North and East London Branch, calling for action by the union to prevent members being intimidated.

In what is bound to be an emotive session, the Welsh contingent will raise further concerns that arts in the principality will be further affected by possible political interference when the Welsh Assembly takes over funding for several high-profile cultural organisations.

Calling for the council to set up a working party to monitor censorship issues, to formulate a policy and to mount a response on behalf of members, the motion states: “In Wales from 2006 the arts council will no longer operate as an arms length funder for nominated high value arts organisations. The responsibility has been taken over by the Welsh Assembly Government, raising the spectre, whether true or not, of direct political interference in, and suppression of, the creative arts.”

There has been anger that performer David Soul was asked by those involved in Jerry Springer to defend the position of the show in which he starred, following protest and intimidation by a fundamentalist Christian group. Concern has also been raised that performers were put at risk following violent opposition to Behzti, which depicted a rape in a Sikh temple, by a section of that community in Birmingham. It was being performed at Birmingham Repertory Theatre.

The motion from the North and East London Branch of Equity states that the council should “intervene immediately and decisively in the defence of Equity members and in support of other media union members, so that all measures are explored to protect their freedom of expression when attacked”, and should “defend vigorously freedom of expression that does not contravene legislation designed to protect ethnic minority groups from racism”.

Coverage of the conference will be featured here on The Stage website during the week beginning May 24.