Actors, Artists Denounce Donald Trump’s Proposed Art Budget Cuts
President Trump’s proposal to eliminate funding to the Corporation of Public Broadcasting and the National Endowment of the Arts was denounced by the artistic community on Thursday.
PBS President and CEO Paula Karger issued a statement outlining the low costs and high returns of public broadcasting.
“PBS and our nearly 350 member stations, along with our viewers, continue to remind Congress of our strong support among Republican and Democratic voters, in rural and urban areas across every region of the country. We have always had support from both parties in Congress, and will again make clear what the public receives in return for federal funding for public broadcasting. The cost of public broadcasting is small, only $1.35 per citizen per year, and the benefits are tangible: increasing school readiness for kids 2-8, support for teachers and homeschoolers, lifelong learning, public safety communications and civil discourse,” the statement read.
In a separate statement, NEA (National Endowment for the Arts) Chairman Jane Chu wrote, “We are disappointed because we see our funding actively making a difference with individuals of all ages in thousands of communities, large, small, urban and rural, and in every Congressional District in the nation.”
An online petition to support federal funding of the arts has already received over 230,000 signatures.
Actors and artists took to social media to denounce the proposed budget cuts. #SaveTheNEA continues to be a trending hashtag.
Proposed Trump #SkinnyBudget eliminates @NEAarts. Tell your representative we need to #SAVEtheNEA. More here: https://t.co/oFscNGDM6v
— Kal Penn (@kalpenn) March 16, 2017
Actor Kal Penn posted a call to action writing, “Proposed Trump #SkinnyBudget eliminates @NEAarts. Tell your representative we need to #SAVEtheNEA. More here: http://bit.ly/2k1vrd3”
Annual federal budget…
for the entire NEA: $148 million
for the entire NEH: $148 million
for military marching bands: $437 million— Mark Harris (@MarkHarrisNYC) March 16, 2017
Author Mark Harris called out the disparity in spending. Trump aims to increase military spending by $54 billion.
Not Important: Air, Water, Foreign Relations, Food, Labor, Health, Education, The Poor, Energy, Justice
Important: Cool Warplanes, Fear https://t.co/YA7pKGwMjJ
— Ken Tremendous (@KenTremendous) March 16, 2017
Producer/writer Mike Schur, under his Ken Tremendous pseudonym, agreed.
Anybody sentient among the no-difference-between-Clinton-and-Trump crowd that wants to take a crack at this? https://t.co/7CkHS6Hxb3
— David Simon (@AoDespair) March 16, 2017
David Simon also posted a link to the Washington Post’s breakdown of the proposed budget cuts, asking, “Anybody sentient among the no-difference-between-Clinton-and-Trump crowd that wants to take a crack at this?”
Let's keep them going. @PBS @NPR ❤ https://t.co/vbXcjKIyOp
— Sophia Bush (@SophiaBush) March 16, 2017
Actress Sophia Bush showed support of PBS and NPR, tweeting, “Let’s keep them going.”
A number of notable poets weighed in as well.
You know all those senators you have on speed dial, let's remind them that Art is NOT a Luxury.#SavetheNEA #poets #writers #artistsunite pic.twitter.com/b8T8IOStCT
— Kelli Russell Agodon (@KelliAgodon) March 16, 2017
Here are the arguments often used against funding the arts. Can't help but to note the typo in the headline… https://t.co/qhg6l2MgT8 pic.twitter.com/lr2Fk01PMe
— Jen Benka (@jenbenka) March 16, 2017
Not a petition guy, but never thought in my lifetime that I'd have to tell Congress to #SaveTheNEA https://t.co/7PBZ6hN3Rz
— Robert Peake (@PeakePoetics) March 16, 2017
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