A scene from \u201cTrayf\u201d by Lindsay Joelle, a 2017 finalist in the Jewish Plays Project’s Jewish Playwriting Contest Finalists. (Theater J; Jewish Plays Project)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
\u201cOver the past decade, Americans have witnessed a concerted and widespread effort to rewrite our nation\u2019s history, replacing objective facts with a distorted narrative driven by ideology rather than truth,\u201d the executive order reads. \u201cThis revisionist movement seeks to undermine the remarkable achievements of the United States by casting its founding principles and historical milestones in a negative light.\u201d<\/p>\n
The order goes on to say that federally run parks and museums \u2014 and the Smithsonian in particular \u2014 must become \u201csolemn and uplifting public monuments that remind Americans of our extraordinary heritage, consistent progress toward becoming a more perfect Union, and unmatched record of advancing liberty, prosperity, and human flourishing.\u201d<\/p>\n
The disappearance of federal support for private museums comes two years after the U.S. National Strategy to Combat Antisemitism, an initiative of the Biden White House, described museums as a critical tool against the spread of hatred. <\/p>\n
The policy push led to a federal grant that paid for a national summit about how museums can combat antisemitism and for a guide for museum professionals. Held a few months after Oct. 7, 2023 amid a wave of antisemitism, the summit was called \u201cMuseums Respond.\u201d Until the gutting of the IMLS, Beresniova was counting on the availability of federal funding to expand outreach and training. <\/p>\n
\u201cThis content has to be amplified to take hold in the national consciousness, and federal support in this endeavor is vital,\u201d she said. <\/p>\n
Federal funding for cultural institutions isn\u2019t just about dollars \u2014 it also serves as a powerful endorsement, fundraisers say. Receiving a government grant signals that an organization is doing important work, with clear plans, accountability measures, and oversight in place. It\u2019s a vote of confidence that can unlock private donations, especially for small organizations with less fundraising infrastructure. <\/p>\n
The disruption of that dynamic is worrying for Lou Cove, who runs CANVAS, a grant-making and advocacy organization dedicated to increasing Jewish philanthropic support for the arts. (The Jewish Telegraphic Agency is a brand of 70 Faces Media, which receives funding from CANVAS.)<\/p>\n
\u201cThe loss of the imprimatur of federal funding is so almost as bad as losing the money because the Jewish philanthropic community already isn\u2019t great about supporting the arts,\u201d he said, estimating support at less than 1% of the Jewish philanthropic sector.<\/p>\n
The reluctance stems in part, Cove said, from the feeling among many donors that are not equipped to evaluate the impact of Jewish arts and culture organizations on their own. The problem is especially dire amid rising antisemitism and other issues regarded as existential, he said. <\/p>\n
\u201cDonors are saying, \u2018The arts are a nice-to-have, but not a need-to-have in a moment of crisis like this,\u2019\u201d Cove said. <\/p>\n
But even institutions that work explicitly on the crisis of antisemitism and don\u2019t receive any money from the federal government are expecting fundraising to become more difficult as organizations affected by the cuts turn to donors to help. <\/p>\n
The Tucson Jewish Museum & Holocaust Center is concerned, for example, about the viability of its annual donor-supported educators conference, which every year trains dozens of local teachers in Holocaust instruction. <\/p>\n
\u201cOrganizations that have traditionally relied on government grants are going to be rushing into that philanthropic grant pool,\u201d said Lori Shepherd, executive director of the Tucson museum. \u201cWe\u2019re already seeing it, and it\u2019s making it more challenging for those of us who relied on that support. So it\u2019s a ripple effect that can be very challenging.\u201d<\/p>\n
If Shepherd is worried about the impact on her museum\u2019s finances, she says that she and other museum leaders are aghast at what the cuts represent. <\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re reeling from these \u2014 for lack of a better word \u2014 attacks,\u201d she said. \u201cWe\u2019re not able to focus yet on the long-term effects that are going to be true and lasting devastation. This is going to strip our communities of access to educational resources and ideas.\u201d<\/p>\n
She says she sees in recent events a repetition of the historical events about which her museum teaches. <\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s not hyperbole. It feels calculated to create a society of people who are actively hostile to education, who are actively hostile to knowing and understanding the world. And once that\u2019s embedded, it will be really hard for us to turn that page back,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, at a small organization called the Jewish Plays Project, the attitude is that whatever the perils of the day may be, the show must go on. <\/p>\n
Last year, the group was approved for a $20,000 grant from the National Endowment for the Arts, to expand its marquee playwriting contest, a national endeavor to discover new Jewish play scripts and advance them to production in theaters around the country. <\/p>\n
Staff at the NEA recently told the group\u2019s founder and executive artistic director, David Winitsky, that the money will arrive as promised, and he\u2019s already applied to renew the grant during the next funding cycle. <\/p>\n
But he knows that the staff handling his grants could be out of their jobs at any moment and the money may never materialize. Still, he said he\u2019s refusing to be pessimistic and vowed to continue making Jewish art with whatever support is available.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t want to be pollyannaish about it,\u201d he said. \u201cThe most powerful government in the world really does want to control or limit art. I spend a lot of time talking to artists who are losing their minds about it. I tell them to keep calm and carry on. The world needs what we do.\u201d<\/p>\n
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