I would seriously explore the idea of having Deborah Santana as “The Arts in Education,” “Film Director,” Steven Spielberg and “Musical Composer,” Wynton Marsalis.

Sincerely,

Perry J.

As artists, and as children of influential artists, we support Quincy Jones’ efforts to create a U.S. Secretary of the Arts. During his interview with Wolf Blitzer of CNN on Inauguration Day, Quincy renewed his call to give the arts and humanities a Cabinet-level post in the Obama Administration and suggested the formation of an Advisory Committee to further this goal.

“Jones, who has been promoting the idea for at least 10 years by his count, said yesterday that he has specific responsibilities in mind for the office. He wants an education system that teaches the history and personalities of the arts, particularly music. “I have traveled all over the world all the time for 54 years. The people abroad know more about our culture than we do,” he said. “A month ago at my high school in Seattle, I asked a student if he knew who Louis Armstrong was. He said he had heard his name. I asked him about Duke Ellington and John Coltrane. He didn’t even know their names. That hurts me a lot,” Jones said. (From the Washington Post, Jan. 13, 2009.)

Here are our choices for Advisory Committee Members:
Music: Wynton Marsalis
Film: Steven Spielberg
Stage: Joanne Woodward
Spoken Word: Kanye West
Dance: Judith Jamison
Sports and Movement: Cheryl Lynne Rubbo
Museums: Annette de la Renta
Arts in Education: Deborah Santana

I am an artist and an arts teacher. I just heard about this effort recently and have honestly been a bit torn by it. On one hand, I feel like I should support something that is intended to result in greater support for the arts. On the other hand, many relationships with government are a double edged sword and something in the back of my head is wondering if we in the arts community should be more careful about what we ask for.

The arts provide powerful modes of speech & expression which are very well lubricated by the first amendment and the arts already receive some government funding through the National Endowment for the Arts. So, I wonder what we might actually gain from such a government post in the hands of someone who would support the arts, but also what we could lose from someone who might want to use the arts to reinforce their political agenda.

For example, would Obama supporters have wanted to see what an unscrupulous Bush appointee could have done with such a post. Could a Bush Secretary of the Arts have provided an excuse for funneling more government funding into the hands of “Bush favored” organizations in the name of ‘The Arts’? Might Bush & Rove have found a way to use artistic outlets to subtly promote their brand of nationalism & patriotism over their opposition?

Proposing funding increases for The National Endowment for the Arts may be a more appropriate way to channel public funding towards the arts & arts education with reduced risk of political contamination. The NEA is chaired by presidential appointments and it’s funding is set by congress. Other than that, it is a relatively independent organization that has often been healthily out of step with politicians and the “moral majority” (which may be partly to blame for its current lack of funding).

For the moment I’m leaning a little towards believing the Arts might stay more healthy and vibrant by maintaining some distance from government rather than getting under the covers with whoever is in power. Then again, I haven’t heard or read any specifics for what this proposed position would entail and that could change my position. So, I’d be interested to hear more specifically what Secretary of Arts supporters are hoping this person would be able to accomplish. But remember, if such a post is created we have no guarantees about how the next president we don’t like will define the post.

Cheers,
John

We support and applaud Quincy Jones’ efforts to create a U.S. Secretary of the Arts. During his interview with Wolf Blitzer of CNN on Inauguration Day, Quincy renewed his call to give the arts and humanities a Cabinet-level post in the Obama Administration and suggested the formation of an Advisory Committee to further this goal.

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http://www.petitiononline.com/esnyc/petition.html

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