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Artist Resource: Commit to Arts Advocacy
Governor Phil Scott gave his first budget address at the State House in January. In that address, he urged the legislature to join him in working step by step to create a balanced budget that will put Vermont on a new path to a prosperous future. Governor Scott likened the task of building Vermont's budget to climbing Mount Mansfield: "I learned a long time ago - after you look at that peak - you turn your focus to the stretch right in front of you ... [until you make] it to the top." He invited the lawmakers not to feel overwhelmed, but to join him in "working stretch by stretch. Because great things are at the top, if we have the discipline and commitment to follow through."
Vermont's budget is not the only one that proposes cuts to the arts at this stage - funding for the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH), Institute of Museums and Library Services (IMLS), and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) also remain in question at the national level.
What can you do? Advocate. Apply discipline and commitment to ensuring that local and national leadership understand the importance of funding for arts and humanities.
- Americans for the Arts (AFTA) recently created an Arts Mobilization Center that provides the up-to-date resources for addressing current advocacy issues.
- The Arts Action Fund, the nation's only PAC for the arts. Join this organization to receive periodic messages and action alerts.
- Become familiar with the Vermont Arts Council's Action Center, and join the Advocacy Updates mailing list to learn about calls to action.
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