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Poster from National Museum of American History.
Click to listen to "Free and Fair Elections" (c. 1800) sung by Oscar Brand.
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The arts have been an essential part of our nation’s culture since before we declared our independence – contributing to our civic celebrations and political campaigns as well as our daily lives. Enjoy the posters and music assembled by our Culture Counts team that accompany this alert!
Artists and musicians are everywhere in our communities – from the art, music and drama teachers in our schools, to painters whose murals enliven our towns and cities, to all those involved in creating and producing concerts and plays. They enrich our lives, offer inspiration and challenge, reflection and joy.
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Poster from National Museum of American History.
Click to listen to "I Am America" (2020) by Shea Diamond.
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But the arts and humanities are in trouble in this country. Music and art programs are being cut from elementary and secondary education as non-essential. Funding cuts in DC ripple through the economy and, because public funding has always been crucial to leveraging private support, funding for arts and humanities organizations is harder to find. States, cities and philanthropists shift priorities to fill in the gaps, and too often the arts are starved in the process.
What does this have to do with voting? Voting has consequences. Elected officials at all levels of government propose budgets and establish funding priorities that either include or exclude arts and humanities. Politicians who support the arts can play a critical role in keeping the arts alive and thriving.
The arts and humanities need your support. To help you get involved and take action, we have assembled the list of resources below.
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ClassACTion Resource Guide:
Vote for the Arts!
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Poster from National Museum of American History.
Click to listen to "19th Amendment" (2018) by Dolly Parton.
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CLASSACTION 1: Register to vote or check your registration status, research the candidates’ positions, make a plan to vote, and VOTE! And encourage your friends to do the same! See our handy Voting Resource Guide, put together by members of the Voting: Our Constitutional Rights & Responsibilities Working Group.
CLASSACTION 2: Call or write to your local, state, and federal elected officials and ask them to preserve funding for the arts and humanities. For templates, and contact information for your representatives, go to Americans for the Arts website.
CLASSACTION 3: The Congressional Humanities Caucus and the Senate Cultural Caucus are informal groups of House and Senate members who share similar legislative or policy interests. Find out who is supporting the arts and contact them regarding federal funding. Use the Congressional Caucus webpage to get in contact.
CLASSACTION 4: Support state and local arts organizations and artists. Search for appropriations information plus lists of organizations in all 50 states and DC on the Americans For the Arts- By Location webpage. The National Humanities Alliance helps build greater support at the local, state, and federal levels for community-based humanities organizations, and their State and Jurisdictional Humanities Councils webpage features a list of these organizations.
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Poster from National Museum of American History.
Click to listen to "People Have the Power" (1988) by Patti Smith.
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CLASSACTION 5: If you work for or are involved with a 501(c)(3) nonprofit arts organization, check out theArtsVote Webinar Seriesof the Arts Action Fund to learn what your organization can do to encourage voter participation for people in the arts.
CLASSACTION 6: Learn permissible non- partisan voting activities for non-profits.
CLASSACTION 7: Find non-partisan actions you can take or support to encourage others to register and vote. For example, read through the League of American Orchestras Voter Engagement web page, including their recommendations to support at least $213 million for the NEA and NEH in FY2027 and to support the Arts Education for All Act.
CLASSACTION 8: Share your intent to vote to support the arts – and share this alert – with your followers on your social media accounts.
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Don’t forget to review ClassACT’s Voting Alert 1: To Vote or Not to Vote, and our 2026 Voting Activism Opportunities Spreadsheet.
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This alert has been prepared by ClassACT HR73, a non-partisan, non-profit organization founded by classmates at Harvard/Radcliffe to promote social justice and positive change. More at www.classacthr73.org.
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