04-13-2010: Americans for the Arts, in conjunction with 86 national organizations, hosted the 2010 Arts Advocacy Day. More than 500 arts advocates from across the country held meetings with congressional offices. Mayor Joseph P. Riley, Jr.

Americans for the Arts, in conjunction with the Congressional Arts Caucus and 86 national co-sponsors, celebrates Arts Advocacy Day 2010 today. More than 500 arts advocates from across the country are meeting with their representatives on Capitol Hill, calling on Congress to support arts-friendly legislation and policies. A highlight of the day is a congressional hearing entitled “Arts Build Communities” hosted by Rep. James P. Moran (D-VA), Chairman of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on the Interior. Advocacy has been at the core of Americans for the Arts’ history and is one of the many milestones being celebrated during the organization’s 50th anniversary year. Arts Advocacy Day 2010 brings together a broad cross section of America’s cultural and civic organizations, along with hundreds of grassroots arts activists.

Americans for the Arts, the nation’s leading nonprofit for advancing the arts, is celebrating Arts Advocacy Day today along with the Congressional Arts Caucus and 86 national co-sponsors. A highlight of the day is a Congressional hearing entitled “Arts Build Communities” hosted by the House Appropriations Subcommittee on the Interior and its newly appointed chairman, Rep. James P. Moran (D-VA). Americans for the Arts witnesses at the hearing include acclaimed actors Jeff Daniels and Kyle MacLachlan, Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter, and U.S. Army Brigadier General Nolen V. Bivens (ret.). Witnesses are asking Congress to support a budget of $180 million for the National Endowment for the Arts in the FY 2011 Interior Appropriations bill.

Today, hundreds of dedicated arts supporters from across the country came together in Washington, DC for National Arts Advocacy Day, a united effort to tell Capitol Hill how important culture is to our communities, how much arts education means to our children, and how much the arts improve our daily lives.