Poets' livelihoods at risk in proposed budget cuts

The poetry scene in Auckland city is one of many potential victims of the proposed Auckland Council budget cuts.

The proposed budget for 2023/24 is showing a potential cut of $35.6 million, leaving Auckland based poets scrambling for answers.

Poets are already vying for funding and now creatives may be forced to halt their careers in the arts all together.

The last allotment for funding was through Creative New Zealand Arts Grants, and its applications closed less than 24 hours after it opened.

2020 National Poetry Slam Winner Nathan Joe says the idea of the arts cuts makes him “super sad.”

“It makes me realise that there are a lot of people who do not value what artists, including myself, bring to society. It's devastating to live in a country where your worth as a citizen and your role in society is questioned in such a way.”

He says since the onset of Covid-19, artists have been pushed out of the industry, and that the proposed cuts will encourage more.

“We will see the devastating loss of our best artists over this coming period if these cuts go ahead. That's an inevitable fact of the matter.”

One of the co-founders of JAFA, Auckland’s only adult poetry slams, Carrie Rudzinksi,  agrees that “artistic career sustainability is already so difficult within Aotearoa.”

“Poets in this country spend an inordinate amount of time, energy, and stress applying for funding and praying that funding comes through so they can continue their work. This will have a significant, devastating impact on the arts for years to come.”

Daniel Goodwin, another JAFA Board member and performer/poet says they rely on income from commission work that is funded by the Auckland arts budget.

“Without those smaller, more regular contracts, the stress of living increases. Suddenly you're not waiting on another $400 coming in, you need to make sure you're getting larger income contracts, which limits your flexibility and affects your stress as an artist. It's going to change how so many of us have to work, for the worse.”

“A lot of our artists are just going to leave and getting them back will be a struggle.” Goodwin adds.

Poets in New Zealand have had to take on day jobs as well as paid poetry gigs in order to make ends meet.