This week, we virtually convened arts advocates from across the country after shifting our annual National Arts Action Summit to an online event due to the COVID-19 crisis. It was a great week with tons of information from expert speakers, thoughtful questions and conversation among attendees, and even a few drop-ins from Members of Congress. The full Summit is available as recorded webinars on ArtsU in case you missed any sessions or want to register for more.

Also this week, we explored a new research report on Local Arts Agency partnerships, heard from more of our Arts & Culture Leaders of Color Fellows, and shared a new poem by Johnson Fellow Hannibal Lokumbe to close out National Poetry Month. Finally, a look ahead to next week: make plans to join us in the #GivingTuesdayNow celebration of unity and generosity!

ARTSblog

New Report on Arts/Non-Arts Partnerships Digs Into How They Work Best by Clay Lord and Jessica Stern
Ninety-one percent of all local arts agencies (LAAs) in the United States have at least one partnership, though the alchemy of pursuing, setting, and sustaining those partnerships varies. It is one of the most prevalent and consistent strategies for LAAs to expand their influence and address community issues. 

Pre-historic Optimism in the Age of Corona by Andrew Aaron Valdez
We’re up against a mama dinosaur right now. This pandemic has taken its toll on our nation. The world right now is scary to think about, but it’s okay to be afraid sometimes. There are hordes of baby dinosaurs, or little joys, waiting for us on the other side of this. We just have to wait it out and find our moment to strike.

In the Hands of a Loving Heart by Pam Korza
On this last day of National Poetry Month, we have a special gift from musician and composer Hannibal Lokumbe, whom Americans for the Arts is proud to honor as our 2020 Johnson Fellow for Artists Transforming Communities. Hannibal composed this poem out of intense concern for the dire moment that all humankind is experiencing and the many people we hold dear.

Supervision. by Gibran Villalobos
In the midst of this emergency, I have observed how institutions have immediately taken action to facilitate programs. I admire the resilience of the arts sector—its agility and improvisation are often pulled off with success, disproportional to anemic budgets with robust audiences. Yet, I am also dismayed that the arts, once again, confronts a different crisis, an unprecedented crisis.

News Room

Share Your Art on #GivingTuesdayNow
The creators of GivingTuesday noticed the outpouring of generosity and community in response to COVID-19 and have created a new celebration to spotlight the good deeds happening right now all over the world. On Tuesday, May 5, join Americans for the Arts’ celebration of #GivingTuesdayNow, a global day of unity and generosity, by sharing how you are using the arts to stay connected.

ArtsU

National Arts Action Digital Summit
Amid the health crisis of COVID-19, we made the difficult decision to cancel the traditional in-person gathering of the National Arts Action Summit. In its place, this week we brought advocates a brand-new experience to engage with one another digitally, and to have an entire suite of arts policy webinars at your fingertips. The virtual Summit featured expert speakers from Americans for the Arts and some of our 85+ National Partners, as well as remarks from arts champions on Capitol Hill. If you didn't attend the Summit live this week, you can still access the content on ArtsU and watch the recorded sessions on your own schedule. Register anytime for individual sessions, or sign up for the full Summit and get access to all 13 webinars at once!

The agenda of individual sessions includes:

• FY2021 Legislative and Political Update
• Supporting the Arts in Transit Projects
• The Latest in Tax Policy for Artists, Organizations, and Philanthropy
• Advancing Arts and Health
• Supporting our Military and Veterans Through the Arts
• COVID-19 Relief Package
• Legislating the Creative Economy
• Expanding Arts and Technology
• Supporting Cultural Exchange and Visas for International Artists
• Protecting the Arts in Higher Education
• Briefing on the National Endowment for the Arts, Charitable Giving, and Education Policy
• Diving Deeper: K-12 Education Policy
• Strengthening Arts and Juvenile Justice

Pictured above: Reps. Suzanne Bonamici (D-OR) and Chellie Pingree (D-ME) spoke on Zoom to attendees of the COVID-19 Relief Package session at the National Arts Action Digital Summit.