). Can you imagine seeing Arthur Miller in somefrumpy suit on a white background talking about some play he wrote or wasmoved by and then fading in the words “Support the Arts Now. www.nea.org” or “The NEA helped Mr. Miller write
The Crucible
. Support the Arts Now.www.nea.gov” at the bottom? Tony Morrison could read a poem. Yoko Onocould paint the viewer’s television screen with see-through paint. BruceSpringstein could sing a song. Yo-Yo Ma could fiddle around. Most of theseentertainers would probably donate their time and the result would be powerfulstuff.
•
Show/discuss that “An International Comparison: Direct Public Expenditures onthe Arts and Museums” chart on some television or radio PSAs. That alone mightmake people contribute to the NEA out of embarrassment.
•
I already mentioned one of the classic complaints average people have aboutfunding the arts which is that no one wants their money to end up in the hands of “fringe” artists whose work they find offensive. For instance, most of themembers of my family would scowl at the idea of giving even a dollar to the NEAin fear that a funded artist would make a trash bag out of an old American flag or paint a picture of the Virgin Mary dressed up like a prostitute.You and I both know that these types of “fringe” artists get very little money fromthe NEA to begin with and that in fact, as I said in my last point, the country’smost prestigious artists and organizations get much more of the funding.Therefore I suggest you come up with a list of rebuttals or “answers to mostfrequently asked questions” and publish the hell out of those answers (or send it tocongressional leaders when requesting funding). I’m sure many experts, famous people, Pulitzer Prize winners, local/state arts organizations and scholars would be willing to donate time to write up rebuttals and articles on such topics such as:
o
Who really gets NEA funding?
o
What artists, works or organizations has the NEA funded?
o
Artist/Arts Organization Success Stories
o
Why is art important, i.e. how does art directly benefit humanity?
Expounding upon the last one could be a
windfall
for the NEA. If Americancitizens from all walks of life were exposed to the myriad of ways that art has hada direct impact
every day
on the world around us, the results could be staggering.For instance, it has been scientifically (or at least, to me, very persuasively) proven that music helps people heal (mentally and physically), that being exposedto certain kinds of art and music can make happier, smarter, and less violentchildren (or prison inmates). Upton Sinclair’s
The Jungle
revolutionized the
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