EVENT PREVIEW: Creative Walk for Windsor

Okay, anyone who knows Tom Lucier (co-owner of Phog Lounge) knows he can be a bid obsessive-compulsive about his causes. Not to say his causes aren't superb, justified and needed, but Tom has a way of being everywhere (from YouTube to Twitter) that sometimes his causes are lost in his eccentric soap boxing.

Well, I've supported many of his ventures and attended several of his call-0uts, but this is one that I think he is 100% correct on.

On Monday morning at 9:30am (yes, that's right, a.m.), on Windsor's 117th Birthday, Mayor Eddie Francis will be taking citizens on his Mayor's Walk down by the Riverside. Well, there are some within the creative class (as well as Windsor-Essex Walks) that are suggesting we take a Creative Walk for Windsor to intercept Eddie's walk and after watching Tom's plea, I fully agree.

Here's the details from a press release:

Creative City Walk
WALK FOR WINDSOR!
Monday, May 18, 2009
9:30 am – 2 pm

Windsor Endowment for the Arts (WEA) in partnership with Windsor/Essex Walks and WindsorEats.com are inviting all local arts groups, artists, arts advocates, children, seniors, families, and visitors to join us to celebrate Windsor’s birthday, together as a community.

Health, sports, businesses, environmentalists, designers, chefs, everyone is invited to join Windsor’s Walk for a Creative City.

Our efforts will reinforce our commitment to Windsor as a creative and cohesive community, while highlighting our diversity and strength - together as a group.

9:30 a.m: Meet and warm up at Morning Flight sculpture, Riverfront Sculpture Garden
10:00 a.m: Let's start walking!
11:00 a.m: Riverfront Festival Plaza with food and entertainment

Meet up with friends and let's show everyone what a great and creative community we are! We need your support to show commitment to OUR CITY.

Walk for Our Creative City!

If you are an organization, business, group that wants to participate, please contact Pina at pina@windsoreats.com

Okay, got it? Good.

Now watch Tom's video plea for people to attend. He's bang on the money. There's been far too many calls-to-arms put out by so many people, from playwrights to musicians, from bar owners to gallery owners, and so many Windsorites (especially those directly involved) who ignore or chose not to attend. The city will never take us seriously if those within the arts community continue to ride the apathy train rather than affecting the change personally. As someone who has long championed a creative cause and far too often seen the people I've been defending and trying to encourage stand by the wayside waiting for me to continue to put words in their mouths or direct unknowns to their websites, I can say I feel his pain.



So I will be there at 9:30 am. And like Tom Lucier, I ask you to think about it the next time the public or the media or someone ignores your art. Have you really made your presence known and your voice heard, or are you stuck in a cycle of playing to your friends at a comfortable bar? Is this what you really want to do or is this something you want to do to justify the late nights and expensive instruments?

It's your call friends. Meet you in the morn with our coffees and are eye boogers. Let's show Windsor who we are and why we do this.

We are the creative voices of Windsor, Ontario. If we don't care if our own city knows who we are, they why should anyone?

(PS - The art piece they're referring to - "Morning Flight", located at the end of Askin at the river - looks like this:)