MONDAY, April 3, Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito, Majority Leader Jimmy Van Bramer, and hundreds of outraged artists and cultural workers held a Rally to Save the Arts to protest the Trump Administration’s proposed elimination of the National Endowment for the Arts, the National Endowment for the Humanities, the Institute of Museum and Library Services, and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. A broad and diverse coalition of leaders and supporters of art, culture, and libraries joined the Speaker and Majority Leader in support of these agencies and endowments. After the rally, the Majority Leader chaired a hearing where the Committee on Cultural Affairs and Libraries voted to approve a resolution in support of the NEA, NEH, IMLS, and CPB.
The rally was the first of its kind in New York City, the cultural capital of the United States, where cultural leaders, museum directors, artists, dancers, library leaders, union leaders, arts advocacy organizations, and Broadway actors, including L. Steven Taylor, Jelani Remy, and Ciara Renée, all stood together to oppose the broad based cuts to the creative class which drive both the soul and the economy of NYC. The crowd reached the occupancy limit of City Hall and many of those waiting were not allowed to enter. Hundreds supported the rally from outside of City Hall, including instrumentalists whose music could be heard from City Hall Park.
“President Trump’s unprecedented and vicious assault on the arts and the humanities with the proposed elimination of the NEA, NEH, IMLS, and CPB would be devastating for the heart and soul of our country,” said Majority Leader Jimmy Van Bramer. “As the Chair of the Committee on Cultural Affairs and Libraries in the New York City Council, I will fight these cuts at every stage of the budget process. These cuts would cripple cultural organizations and libraries in big cities like New York, the cultural capital of the world, and in small towns all across our country. We in New York City know that the arts, culture, humanities and libraries make our America truly great. President Trump’s blatant disregard for the importance of the arts has no place in our city and our country, and we will not stand idly by and watch it happen.”
The arts are a great investment in our national economy and the contributions of the federal government help large and small cultural organizations create new and innovative programing to grow the cultural footprint of the United States. The comparatively small budgets of the NEA, NEH, IMLS, & CPB produce revenue for our country and generate a positive return on investment. Organizations leverage the prestige of grants from these agencies and endowments to attract additional non-governmental support. Additional facts about the arts and cultural industry nationwide and in New York City are below:
Nationwide:
o The arts & culture are a $730 billion industry nationwide.
o More than 4.7 million workers are in the arts and cultural sector nationwide.
o The arts & culture account for 4.2 percent of the nation’s annual GDP.
New York City:
o In New York City, the arts account for more than 8 percent of the total workforce, employing more than 300,000 people.
o New York City Cultural non-profits received $14.5 million in fiscal year 2016 and $233.2 million from 2000 to 2016.
o Over $21 million was granted by the NEA for Arts Education.
o From 2000 to 2016, Manhattan organizations received $189.5 million in funding from the NEA, organizations in Brooklyn received $34 million, in the Bronx received $5.6 million, in Queens received $3.3 million, and in Staten Island received $774, 500.
o In 2016, there were 419 recipients of NEA funding in New York City. Over the last sixteen years, the number of recipients in Queens increased by 43%.
o In 2016, performing arts companies, museums, and historic sites that received NEA funding collectively maintained a staff of 30,154 and paid $453.4 million in total wages.
o In New York City, the tourism industry sustains more than 375, 000 jobs citywide.
“To threaten our arts, is to undermine the history and culture that make this nation unique. It means attacking our very own civilization,” said Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito.”This is why it’s so important for us to come together and find ways to empower our communities, especially our youth, through the arts. I thank Council Member Jimmy Van Bramer for his leadership and his ongoing efforts to ensure that art and culture continue to thrive in our City.”
“It’s the economy,_____! The arts aren’t a drain on the budget—they MAKE us money! Arts funding is not just passing out money to indulgent arty types in cities, it’s an incredible investment,” said Oscar and Grammy Award winner David Byrne, Lead Singer of the Talking Heads. “We as a nation spend about $740 million on arts support—and in return for non- profits alone! A recent study shows that we get $135 BILLION pumped into the economy. No other investment comes close. It’s good for jobs, it’s good for the economy and any businessperson would be a fool to walk away from this!”
“Art and culture have a profound impact on communities across New York City and beyond,” said NYC Cultural Affairs Commissioner Tom Finkelpearl. “Supporting the people and organizations that create art and provide opportunities to experience culture is an essential responsibility in our democracy. We need to work together to show our officials in Washington how integral art and culture are to the health of communities across the U.S., and just how short sighted these cuts to the NEA, NEH, IMLS, and CPB really are.”
“The proposal to eliminate the IMLS would stymie library innovation and limit learning opportunities for the countless individuals who depend on public libraries to pursue their dreams,” said Queens Library President and CEO Dennis M. Walcott. “IMLS grants have seeded programs and initiatives that have, among other things, made it possible for our libraries to loan hotpots, tablets and e-books, help young children strengthen their reading skills before they enter school and direct adults to information that can improve their financial well-being. I applaud Council Speaker Mark-Viverito and Majority Leader Van Bramer for raising the public’s awareness of the risk these cuts pose to the cultural and educational institutions that are the lifeblood of our democracy.”
“The city’s libraries and cultural institutions provide New Yorkers with critical, irreplaceable access to knowledge, information, art, and experience,” said New York Public Library President Tony Marx.“This work is priceless both to the public and to the city itself, and it is imperative that we fight to protect key Federal funding that makes it all possible. We thank Council Speaker Mark-Viverito and Majority Leader Jimmy Van Bramer for leading that charge, and protecting these valuable assets.”
“The proposed elimination of federal funding for the Institute of Museum and Library Services, as well as the National Endowments for the Arts and Humanities, signals a disturbing and ill-advised shift in our nation’s priorities—a shift that libraries must and will oppose,” said Brooklyn Public Library President and CEO Linda E. Johnson. “In addition to funding innovative library programs, the IMLS confers our profession’s highest honor: the National Medal, which Brooklyn Public Library had the great privilege to accept in a ceremony at the White House last year. We thank Speaker Mark-Viverito and Majority Leader Van Bramer for rallying New Yorkers in support of a federal budget that funds libraries and the arts.”
“I would like to thank Councilmember Van Bramer and Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito for bringing together a broad cross section from the cultural community today to rally against these proposed cuts,” said WNET President and CEO Neal Shapiro. “I would urge congress to reconsider defunding important cultural organizations like CPB. Not just for the sake of our local PBS stations Thirteen and WLIW, but for the sake of the entire system. It is estimated that dozens and dozens of stations across the country would have to shut their doors if CPB is defunded. But like a beach in a storm, the little houses go first, and the big ones follow. We can’t let that happen.”
“Though it accounts for just a fraction of a fraction of the federal budget, the National Endowment for the Arts has an outsized impact on our lives, supporting organizations and individuals that celebrate diversity, encourage creative expression and serve as cornerstones of healthy communities,” said Tino Gagliardi, President, Local 802 American Federation of Musicians. “The arts are a gift to future generations and a national value that must be preserved, supported and celebrated. Attacking the NEA is attacking our national character, and our federal government must provide the NEA with the funding needed to continue to supporting arts organizations that touch lives across the country. Anything short of that is simply unacceptable, as well as culturally and socially irresponsible”
“Donald Trump wrote ‘The Art of the Deal’ – funding the NEA, National Endowment for the Humanities and Corporation for Public Broadcasting is a good deal for our economy,” said Executive Director of Actors’ Equity Mary McColl, “The President says he wants to create jobs – he can start by protecting our nation’s investment in middle class arts jobs.
