Franke James’ News

2013

Canada’s Unsettling Climate – An Interview with Franke James by Dave Heidebrecht
“In a free and open society, individuals should expect to be able to voice their views and opinions openly, without fear of censure or punishment. Living in the relative comfort of a parliamentary democracy such as Canada, most of us believe that though we may not always agree with the ideologies of the party in power, we still have the right to freely share our views on issues that have an impact on our lives…” Link

Freedom to Read 2013: Return of the Blacklist by Charles Monpetit.
“The problem wasn’t the loss of a token government grant, wrote [Franke James] in her blog. The deeper issue was tolerance of dissent in a democracy: “I thought the Canadian embassies were there to help all Canadians… The government should not be telling anyone not to exhibit my art, just because I disagree with unethical oil.”” Link

NY Times Green writes about Franke James’ essay in “Activist Artist vs. Pipeline”

2012

ForestEthics Interviews Franke James on Art & Political Activism. “Art and political activism are the absolute perfect marriage. There’s a long history of art being used to help further social causes — women winning the right to vote, anti-war demonstrations, Earth Day — I fit right into that groove, which is neat. It’s also fun to realize what sets artists apart from scientists and journalists. We can weave symbols, facts, opinions, thoughts, emotion and color all together to raise awareness and inspire action. Sometimes I think that artists are like ad agencies for the planet.”

Canzine Toronto: Chill Against Political Dissent in Art
Franke James is on the panel to discuss “Chill Against Political Dissent in Art”. As the conservative government threatens art grants and rejects funding for artistic projects and centres that support projects it sees as anti-government or “glorify[ing] terrorism,” are artists and art centres afraid to create controversial art for fear of losing funding? Our panelists will discuss the perceptions and realities surrounding this topic. Link

Kingston Arts Council: “Censorship and the Public Display of Art“, featuring keynote speaker Franke James, author, activist and artist, who will join other local arts experts for this important panel discussion at the Central Public Library on Sunday Sept 30th 2pm. Panel questions will range from: Franke James’ experience with censorship of her art; Kingston’s creation of a Public Art Policy; and how we (artists, curators, members of the public), can advocate for freedom of artistic expression. Audience members will be given the opportunity to speak and ask questions of the panel speakers. Link

Corporate Knights ‘Ending the Battle over Bitumen’: Franke James interviews people from 4 stakeholder groups (oil, environment, local community, and Aboriginal) and asks, “Is it time for Canada to create a stewardship council for the oil sands?” [Republished on FrankeJames.com]

The Toronto Quarterly Interviews Franke James ‘Banned on the Hill’ [link]

CARFAC Ontario interviews artist Franke James about her blacklisting by the Canadian Govt DISPATCH August, 2012: Mariam Nader asks: “So when this whole issue came to light about your proposed European tour, you obviously weren’t going to hold your tongue again.” Franke James responds, “Exactly. I just thought to myself, there is no way I’m going to keep my mouth shut. I’m going to make as big of a noise as I possibly can about this.” [link]

Yahoo Canada Politics: Environmental groups chide Harper government for taking credit for emission reductions
Environmental activist Franke James hopes Canadians aren’t fooled by Kent’s statements. “I think the average Canadian hearing this news will [cheer] and think that progress has been made by the Harper government. But they shouldn’t be. In reality the claim that we’re halfway to our 2020 emissions target is accounting smoke and mirrors,” she told Yahoo! Canada News. “The big elephant in the room is that the oil sands are still Canada’s fastest growing source of greenhouse gases. The oil sands are expected to grow rapidly over the next eight years — effectively undoing carbon cuts made in other sectors. Canada could, and should, be doing so much more. Instead of being leaders, we are laggards.” [link]

CityTV’s: Electric Playground interviews essayist Franke James about “What is Harper afraid of?”
“Many Canadians are not aware of the fundamental changes that the Harper Government is making to environmental policies in order to facilitate big oil’s development. It is putting our air and water and land at risk.” [link]

Franke James’ post: Enbridge Spin Doctor Snarls about “Dirty Oil” Essay
What happened when a “somebody” in the Oil and Gas industry dropped by… [link]

Fort McMurray Today
June 19, 2012: Anti-Gateway comic gathering steam
“A comic strip urging the Canadian government to halt development of Enbridge’s Northern Gateway pipeline has gained praise from thousands of online followers, inspiring nearly 6,800 viewers [now 7,156] to sign and send a letter — located at the bottom of the comic strip — protesting Canada’s current environmental oversight laws to their respective Members of Parliament. Titled “What is Harper Afraid Of?” Toronto-based artist and environmental activist Franke James poses a series of questions regarding the proposed pipeline’s risks to the environment, as well as local residents and aboriginal communities.” [link]

New York Times Green
June 19, 2012: Activist Artist vs. Pipeline
“An illustrated article that takes a leaf from “Alice in Wonderland” has gained something of an online following, prompting thousands of people to urge the Canadian government to halt development of the Northern Gateway oil pipeline. In this “visual essay,” posted by the Canadian activist Franke James at her Web site, Alice poses a series of questions about the pipeline’s environmental risks to the Canadian prime minister, Stephen Harper, and his minister of natural resources, Joe Oliver, in brightly illustrated cartoon-like frames.” [link]

Vancouver Observer
June 13, 2012: Harper government targeted artist for her green conscience, internal documents reveal
“Franke James, a Canadian artist and environmental advocate blacklisted by the Harper government, has obtained internal documents indicating Canadian officials worked behind the scenes to discredit her work. An internal Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade (DFAIT) media monitoring report from July 2011 lists James as “an inconvenient artist” (“une artiste qui dérange”), the headline of an article in La Presse. The document was part of the 1,500 pages of internal documents James obtained through Access to Information requests since August 2011.” [link]

Dogwood Initiative
Guest Blog: Franke James Asks “What’s Harper Afraid Of?”
“Canadian Artist Franke James Calls Stephen Harper And Joe Oliver Out In This Hard-Hitting Visual Essay. [link]

PEN Canada
The Politics of Charity: “No Advocacy? No Progress”
Franke James writes “In the fight over social policies, most charities are in the corner of the defenseless, impoverished and vulnerable. Thinking specifically of the environment – how much more defenseless can you get than air, water and wilderness? Who is going to stand up to protect Canada’s natural resources from destructive exploitation if environmental charities cannot?” [Also on Franke's site]
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