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Donald Trump just announced that he is recommending full termination of funding of the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) and National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH), the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) and the Institute for Museum and Library Services (IMLS), for Fiscal Year 2018. Trump is the first ever American President to push to eliminate funding for ALL of the nation’s cultural agencies.
Not only does Trump’s agenda reveal how indifferent he is to programs that enrich people’s lives regardless of their economic standing, but he must also be ignorant to the positive impact the arts and culture make economically. Let’s face it, one of the main things the U.S. produces and exports is culture! Trump’s idea is that the arts, EPA, etc… need to be cut to increase military spending. The U.S. outspends on the military against the next eight highest funded countries combined. In fact, Trump’s proposed $50 billion increase in military spending equals 70% of China’s ENTIRE military funding.
If you are like me, and you think the arts, culture, and public broadcasting are things that are important to our quality of life and national character, use your voice to protest Trump’s proposal. Thanks for caring.
-Shepard
The Trump Administration has launched an all out war on the arts, becoming the first White House in history to officially propose eliminating the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), as well as the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, which includes PBS and NPR. These federally funded institutions affect tens of millions of Americans in local communities across every state and U.S. Territory. It is imperative that grassroots arts advocates speak up for the arts with one unified voice. Here are the steps you can take to help #SaveTheNEA:
- Use our Arts Mobilization Center to contact your elected representatives. Take two minutes to send a customizable message to your Congressperson and Senators to urge them to oppose any attempt to eliminate the NEA.
- Arm yourself with facts and figures to help make the case for the arts in general, and the National Endowment for the Arts in particular.
- In case you can’t make it in person to Arts Advocacy Day, check out the handbook to see the official positions on a range of arts policy issues from a broad coalition of arts organizations.
- Post on Facebook and Twitter to help rally national support to save the NEA. There is strength in numbers and your social media friends can help.
- Contribute to the Arts Action Fund to help ensure we have the resources to maintain our grassroots arts network.
