Now is the time to make your voices heard
By Pat Boyd, Executive Director, South Dakotans for the Arts

 

By the time you read this, we will probably know the fate of legislation we have been watching and advocating for at the Federal level. But as I write, temperatures are running high in Washington, despite the winter winds, and those issues are hung up in a kind of legislative vapor lock. Meanwhile, we are so close to having equitable charitable deductions for artists who donate their work, status quo funding for arts education programs at the Department of Education, funding for the important National Center for Education Statistics survey on arts education in the 2006-2007 school year, a $1million increase in the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS), and fully restored funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting…I am having trouble typing with my fingers crossed.

As always, there is no straightforward “arts bill” or “arts education bill” for us to watch and encourage our Congressional delegation to push through as stand-alone issues. When an amendment or addition has a significant impact, positive or negative, on the arts community, we ask Senators Johnson and Thune and Rep. Herseth for their support, and we get it, until it is tucked up in a legislative package that has so many ropes and ties that it can’t be extricated. Because that happens and will doubtless continue to happen, and because this year is even more complicated than most – an observation so daunting I had to uncross my fingers to type it – it is of utmost importance that we ask our elected representatives questions and get answers on arts issues, while they are in Washington and when they are at home in South Dakota. Who voted for and against what arts issue and why? Who is working to make good on all the rhetoric about the value of the arts, and how? Who is carrying the banner for a complete arts education for every child? What trade-offs had to be made? Where do the arts stand in the long list of priorities?

In South Dakota, there has been real progress in the answer to that priorities question. While the arts have not exactly become the flagship for state policy, they are at least bobbing along brightly in the water. The arts are recognized as a contributing factor in the state’s economy, educational programs, and quality of life. Artists are recognized as contributing citizens and leaders in the state and in their communities. The Community Arts Network’s regions are aligned with those of Tourism, State Development and Education. We have significant arts programs in State Corrections and Social Services, and many more opportunities to come with other partnerships. All to the greater good, but just as we are vigilant in making the distinction between learning in the arts and learning through the arts, we must take care that the creative arts thrive as the arts even as they are being pressed into service to advance other goals. Our advocacy must be directed toward elevating the arts up through the priorities list. To localize the current public awareness message from the National Endowment for the Arts, we believe a great state deserves great art.

Congratulations to the South Dakota Arts Council, past and present, on 40 years of progress in that elevation of the arts in public awareness. Their work and leadership demonstrates balance, creativity, strength and agility – hey, they must be an arts council! They are the nation’s most accessible state arts agency, so call them up or send them an email and wish them a Happy Birthday and a big thank you. (Staff and Council contacts can be found at www.sdarts.org).