Continuing My Thoughts About Mainstream Recognition

I spent my commute from work thinking about the question that someone posed on social media yesterday morning. There are benefits to having 45-60 minutes in the car, uninterrupted by anything other than my own thoughts.

My thoughts turned towards AMTA and what I really want from a professional organization. Often, when I am in such a stew about something hypothetical, it is easier to understand what I want by thinking about what I don't want. So, here is a list of what I do not want from a professional organization...

• Political ANYTHING! I do not want to belong to a professional association that has any ties to any political party. I do not want to be associated with candidates or campaigns. I do not want my membership dues going to support individuals in government. (Now, just so you know, as far as I know AMTA has NEVER done this - I just want it down that this is NOT the role of a professional organization - this is the role of individuals.) If you want to support specific candidates, then do that on your own, but there is no role for an organization that represents a diverse population of professionals in politicking. Period.
• Closed Special Interest Group Sessions at Conference - These closed sessions that take association monies during conferences to provide information to only some music therapists are problematic because once we do this for one group of music therapists, then we open up the door to all groups of music therapists. We would not be able to deny ANYONE from having a closed session - even those who actively hate others. I do not want my conference dues to go towards the perpetuation of hatred. Now, after saying this, I do not mind closed groups - after all, there are times when you have to talk with people who understand your situation better than others - I do mind the use of conference funds for sessions that seek out some people and exclude others based on personal and human characteristics.
• Seeking to control things beyond the purview of a professional organization.  Here's the deal, folks. There are many things wrong with the world that are not AMTA's fault, or AMTA's responsibility, or AMTA's job to change. AMTA has absolutely no say in who gets accepted to music therapy programs in universities. AMTA has absolutely no say in how much money universities charge for tuition. AMTA has no say in how much music therapists get paid in their individual jobs. AMTA has no say in social constructs. I think we members often lose track of what AMTA is supposed to be doing for us, and what we have to do for ourselves. There is a significant difference between what an organization like AMTA can do and what we want them to do. We also have to be aware that many of the issues that affect us (and, by us, I mean each one of us, in our own spaces, in our own locations) are local rather than national. My facility offers me a position as a music therapist. The facility sets the rate of compensation based on lots of local situations. I, as an individual music therapist, have the option to either accept the compensation, deny the compensation, or attempt to negotiate for different compensation. AMTA cannot be a part of every single hiring conversation. AMTA already offers salary ranges and median salary expectations based on information given by AMTA members, but that is where AMTA has to stop. AMTA cannot require facilities to pay certain amounts because THAT IS NOT AMTA'S JOB! If I decide to take a job that is not paying a living wage, that is my fault, not AMTA's.

I am continuing my thought process about all of this as we are facing significant changes in our professional organization. Please remember that these thoughts are my own - they do not represent anyone other than me and are completely founded in my opinions about all sorts of things. I am hoping that, at the end of this process, we will have some clear guidelines about what AMTA can and cannot do for us. I hope that we will be able to focus on the things that AMTA can do for us, and that we will step up to fix some of the things that are our own responsibilities. Let's take some ownership for the local things and let AMTA do the national things.

I think that many of us feel that AMTA looms larger in the world outside of music therapy than is really possible for a small profession and a small membership. We do not have much of a voice as music therapists outside of our own profession. That is what happens when we have around 10,000 board certified music therapists. While 10,000 might sound like a large number to us, in relation to the number of humans in the world, it is not even a drop in a bucket. I think we have put ourselves in several situations over the past five years where we (as a collective) have expected AMTA to fix things that are not its role in the world. As we go through this restructuring process, let's figure out what AMTA is actually supposed to do for members and what AMTA has no say over. Then, let's work to make our local situations better for ourselves and for other music therapists. Let's let our national professional organization do what they can do.

There you go...