[NEohioPAL] Fwd: Action Alert: Tell Your Senators Today to Support the Arts

[Deb Magid]

Dear Listers,

This came through the Fund for Women Artists.  If you think it  
appropriate, please follow the (second) link below to urge our members  
of Congress to include the arts in the bailout package.

Cheers,
Deb

Begin forwarded message:

> From: The Fund for Women Artists <info at WomenArts.org>
> Date: January 30, 2009 11:04:14 AM EST
> To: smmslt111 at gmail.com
> Subject: Action Alert: Tell Your Senators Today to Support the Arts
> Reply-To: info at WomenArts.org
> Tell Your Senators Today to Include the Arts
> in Our National Economic Recovery Plan
>
> The Obama administration is moving quickly on its economic recovery  
> plan, and we need to advocate for artists to be included in as many  
> programs as possible. Since women artists have traditionally been  
> paid less than their male counterparts, we also need to make sure  
> that women's needs are met.
> Several initiatives have emerged in recent months, and on Wednesday  
> the U.S. House of Representatives passed their version of the  
> Economic Recovery Package by a vote of 244 to 188 which included $50  
> million in supplemental grants funding for the National Endowment  
> for the Arts (NEA)!
>
>
> Now the package will go to the U.S. Senate, where they will start  
> their debate on the bill today (Friday, January 30) and will  
> continue through next week.  The Senate Appropriations Committee did  
> not include the arts funding provision in their version of the  
> bill.  We need to make sure that our Senators put it in.
>
> Take Two Minutes To Send An Email Now!
>
> Please take two minutes today to ask your legislators to support the  
> arts in this Economic Recovery package.  Americans for the Arts has  
> set up a web page that makes it easy for you to email your  
> legislators. You can use their text or paste in your own letter.   
> Your help in this effort is critical. Click the link below or paste  
> it in your browser:
> http://capwiz.com/artsusa/issues/alert/?alertid=12426636&type=CO
>
> Americans for the Arts has also drafted a set of nine proposals for  
> ways that the Obama administration should include artists in the  
> economic recovery.  Basically they recommend including artists in  
> every federal program that receives recovery funds. Whether it is  
> community development, economic development, rural development,  
> transportation initiatives, job training programs, or aid to  
> schools, they argue that artists can make important contributions.   
> They are also asking Obama to create a senior level official in the  
> President's office to coordinate arts and cultural policy. You can  
> read the full report at:
> http://www.artsusa.org/pdf/information_services
> /recovery/0109_EconRecoveryAndTheArts.pdf
>
>
>
> Part of Obama's platform was a proposal to create "an Artists Corps  
> of young artists trained to work in low income schools and their  
> communities."  The idea of hiring artists to work in the schools is  
> great, but we see no reason to limit this to "young" artists. Many  
> women artists have lost their teaching jobs in recent years due to  
> budget cuts.  We need to make sure that these excellent and  
> experienced teachers have a chance to return to their classrooms.
>
>
>
>
> OTHER INTERESTING READING ON FEDERAL ARTS PROGRAMS
>
> NEA Statement - The National Endowment for the Arts has issued a  
> statement about Arts and Economic Recovery that gives statistics  
> about the economic impact of the arts and says, "The arts and  
> culture industry is a sector of the economy just like any other with  
> workers who pay taxes, mortgages, rent and contribute in other ways  
> to the economy." You can read the full statement at:
> http://arts.endow.gov/news/news09/arts-and-economic-stimulus.html
>
>
>
> National Campaign to Hire Artists to Work in Schools - The National  
> Campaign is a 50 state effort to promote the use of federal funds to  
> hire artists in the schools and community centers. They draw on the  
> historical precedents of Roosevelt's Works Progress Administration  
> (WPA) jobs program of the 1930's and the national Comprehensive  
> Employment Training Act (CETA) Arts Program of the 1970's.  See http://www.nchaws.org/
>
> Quincy Jones Requests a Secretary of the Arts - Grammy-winning music  
> legend, Quincy Jones, is asking Obama to create a cabinet level  
> "Secretary of the Arts."  Two New York musicians were inspired by  
> Jones' idea and set up an online petition which now has over 200,000  
> signatures.  To sign the petition, go to:
> http://www.petitiononline.com/esnyc/petition.html
>
> Please feel free to reprint any portion of this newsletter, but  
> please give credit to The Fund for Women Artists. (©WomenArts.org  
> 2009) This newsletter was originally published on January 30, 2009.
>
> The Fund for Women Artists
> 3739 Balboa Street #181
> San Francisco, CA 94121
> Phone: (415) 751-2202
> Website: www.womenarts.org
> Email: info at womenarts.org
>
>
>
>

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