Arts Intranet

Small business is the heartbeat of the economy—that’s certainly the case here in Lakewood, Colorado—population 155,000 in a city that occupies 44 square miles between Denver and the foothills of the Rocky Mountains. We have seven large organizations with 1000+ employees, but nearly 7000 entities employ 50 or fewer. Primary employers are critical. But the math is crystal clear … small business rules the road. But as the new millennium arrived, not every part of our City’s economic engine was hitting on all cylinders. Lakewood’s 40 West Arts District is located in the oldest part of our City along West Colfax Avenue—a historic commercial corridor that is just now emerging from 30 years of economic decline, with the arts at the vanguard of its renaissance.

The effects of the shutdown are widespread. The good news about the National Endowment for the Arts (the NEA, a federal agency that receives its annual appropriation from Congress) is that it funds the arts across the country, reaching every Congressional district in all 50 states plus U.S. Territories. The bad news is that any negative impact becomes equally widespread. The American public values the arts and wants access to more opportunities, not fewer. Whether people engage in the arts or not, 90 percent of Americans believe that cultural facilities improve quality of life, and 86 percent believe that cultural facilities are important to local business and the economy. The arts benefits to the community are formidable, and they are to the individual as well. The arts help us address so many challenges in education, health and healing, military, community development, among many others, and the effects of a shutdown are felt not just in the arts organizations, but also in the industries and organizations that are helped by the arts. The benefits of the arts are numerous, but still the ecosystem is fragile and should be cultivated, not endangered.

The arts advocacy season is upon us once again. It’s time to meet with your legislators to help them understand the value of investing in the arts. How to prepare? Start with this list of “10 Reasons to Support the Arts.” It can feel intimidating walking into a legislator’s office—even to experienced advocates. To always feel prepared, I break the advocacy process down into three simple questions: Who gets the message? What is the message? Who delivers the message? Remember the Golden Rule: No numbers without a story, and no stories without a number. The arts are all about stories—often small, always meaningful. Share yours. It’s engaging and draws your listener in—and then pair it with the research-based findings in “10 Reasons to Support the Arts.” Yours will be an advocacy visit that is not soon forgotten.