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Trump’s attack on the NEA, CPB, and NEH is an attack on the arts and humanity in Oakland

by Lynda Carson (tenantsrule [at] yahoo.com)
In Oakland, Trump’s proposed budget cuts that plan to eliminate the Institute of Museum and Library Services would have a major impact on many institutions including the Oakland Museum of California, Chabot Space and Science Center Foundation, and the African American Museum and Library!
Trump’s attack on the NEA, CPB, and NEH is an attack on the arts and humanity in Oakland

Oakland is under siege by the Trump regime’s proposed budget cuts

By Lynda Carson - March 26, 2017

Oakland - The Trump regime has proposed $54 billion in budget cuts to our nation’s non-defense federal programs and agencies, including an additional proposed $18 billion in budget cuts to the non-defense federal agencies. The proposed budget cuts will have a major impact on the residents of the City of Oakland, it’s institutions, housing programs, and federal workers.

In an attack on the arts and humanity, the Trump regime has issued a budget blueprint for FY 2018 that calls for the outright elimination of the National Endowment for the Arts, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, National Endowment for the Humanities, and other cultural agencies, including the Institute of Museums and Libraries. These vital agencies make up less than .02 percent of the proposed federal budget, and have a major impact locally, and across the nation.

The elimination of or major budget cuts to these agencies as being proposed by the Trump regime will have a deep long-lasting negative impact on the general population, the arts, and public humanities programs occurring in our local libraries, schools, museums, veterans’ organizations, and often through radio, television, film and documentaries.

In Oakland, Trump’s proposed budget cuts that plan to eliminate the Institute of Museum and Library Services would have a major impact on many institutions including the Oakland Museum of California, Chabot Space and Science Center Foundation, African American Museum and Library, Regents of the University of California, California Digital Library, University of California, Holy Names University - Paul J. Cushing Library, Friends of Peralta Hacienda Historical Park, Museum of Children's Art, Oakland Museum of California Foundation, Mills College, Children's Hospital & Research Center in Oakland, and the Pardee Home Museum.

Additionally, Trump’s proposed budget cuts to the National Endowments for the Humanities would result in massive budget cuts to the California Humanities organization on 9th Street in Oakland. The California Humanities organization received $2,186,170 from the National Endowments for the Humanities, including an additional $38,700 from other sources, during 2016.

As another example of some of the vital funding from the National Endowments for the Humanities (NEH) given to the beautiful Oakland Museum of California, the museum sought the support in the amount of $400,000 to complete the reinstallation of the Gallery of California History.

World famous luthier/guitar builder Ervin Somogyi said, “I listen to public radio and most people I know in the arts listen to public radio. Public radio has no commercials, and is not feeding us commercial crap like the stuff on Fox News. If President Trump eliminates the funding for the National Endowment for the Arts, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, and the National Endowment for the Humanities, it would be a great loss to our country. These proposed budget cuts are close to being war crimes. They are an attack on the arts and humanity. Trump attacks everything except the Russians. White House press secretary Sean Spicer has been tasked with defending the most incredible lies of President Trump, which is an attack on peoples intelligence and common sense. I think these things in a sense are war crimes. Trump seems to be in a war with this country and is happy to divide it, or divide it further than it already is. These things represent war crimes in the same sense that the Taliban has destroyed centuries old culture and artifacts in countries, that cannot be replaced, for no other reason than they don’t like them. It’s a war crime because cultural institutions are non-combatants. They should not be attacked.” Ervin builds some of the finest sounding guitars in the world, and Al Petteway can be heard on YouTube playing a few guitars built by Ervin Somogyi.

During 2017, in Oakland the National Endowment of the Arts gave a $20,000 grant to Dance Company, including a $20,000 grant to California College of the Arts, a $15,000 grant to Destiny Arts Center, a $10,000 grant to the Islamic Cultural Center of Northern California, a $25,000 grant to Edgar Kunz, a $10,000 grant to Living Jazz, a $10,000 grant to Oakland Interfaith Gospel Choir, and a $20,000 grant to Project Bandaloop. The loss of additional grants would be a great loss to the city.

Concerned about the proposed elimination of the National Endowment of the Arts (NEA), the wonderfully talented musician Mariah Parker said, “The GOP’s plan to gut the NEA is nothing less than an assault on the very fabric of our culture and humanity. The NEA supports small to mid-sized arts organizations that contribute enormously to the health of our communities.  To eliminate support for the arts in order to add a few shekels to an already overly bloated military budget makes absolutely no sense. Without the arts and those things that nourish our spirits, individually and collectively, as the arts do, we have to ask — what is it that we are defending.” Mariah Parker’s Indo Latin Chamber Jazz Sextet has a great show coming up soon at the San Francisco International Arts Festival on June 3rd. Mariah Parker’s Indo Latin Jazz Ensemble has performed at Yoshi’s in Oakland, and can be heard on YouTube.

In a partial quote from Matthew Montfort the fine guitarist with Ancient Future and Mariah Parker’s Indo Latin Chamber Jazz Sextet, he writes: “While the NEA budget is extremely small, it has a large impact on the arts. There will be a domino effect if the NEA budget is cut, and if it is eliminated, that will signal that the USA has no pride whatsoever in its artistic contribution to world culture. That can hardly be considered a way to "make America great again."


In a March 16 release from the Oakland Museum of California, “President Trump released his preliminary budget that includes the elimination of the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH), and the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS). The Oakland Museum of California stands strongly against these cuts and joins with other museums, theaters, symphonies, cultural centers, academic institutions, and, most importantly, all Americans who value the role of the arts and humanities in their own lives and in the well being of their communities.”

“The arts and humanities are core to the heart and soul of what it means to be an American and, indeed, a global citizen. Museums offer arts and humanities programs for every age and demographic, and these programs allow us to share our stories, express our creativity, connect to our neighbors, and expand our understanding of the world and of ourselves. Beyond their value to our minds and spirits, arts and humanities organizations provide jobs to millions of people across the country.”
 
“The NEA, NEH, and IMLS are essential partners in this work, providing grants to many types of nonprofit organizations and helping bring the arts and humanities to every part of America, from cities to rural areas. In just the last two years, the NEA and NEH have provided over $5 million to California museums across the state. While museums, including OMCA, receive only a very small fraction of their funding from the federal government, we speak out in support of many other cultural organizations for whom these funds are vital.” 

“The federal budget process is a protracted one and, over the next few months, the budget will be developed and reviewed by both houses of Congress. At this time, we are urging Congress, where there has been strong bipartisan support for many years for the NEA, NEH and IMLS, to continue funding these agencies. Should these agencies come under serious threat within the House of Representatives or Senate, we will alert OMCA Members and other constituencies and ask for your direct assistance in speaking to our legislators about the importance of the arts and culture to our community and to our vibrant democracy.”

Wealthy Heritage Foundation Members Demand Massive Budget Cuts To Domestic Non-Defense Programs

In addition to the $54 billion in budget cuts that Trump wants, including the proposal to eliminate the funding for the National Endowment for the Arts, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, and the National Endowment for the Humanities, additional massive budget cuts to the federal government are being proposed ranging from $6 trillion to $8.6 trillion, and to as much as over $10 trillion during the next ten years, being proposed by the right-wing fascist organization called the Heritage Foundation.

According to the latest 2015, 990 tax filing of the Heritage Foundation in Washington D.C., their gross receipts for that year was $116,236,337, and after subtracting their liabilities from their assets they had a whopping fund balance of $226,286,115.

The notorious mission of the Heritage Foundation is to formulate and promote conservative public policies based on the principal of free enterprise, limited government, individual freedom, traditional American values, and a strong national defense. In other words, the Heritage Foundation promotes a militaristic right-wing fascist corporate dictatorship being run by billionaires who try to masquerade the fascist entity behind the American flag.

Two wealthy high ranking Trustees of the right-wing fascist Heritage Foundation demanding disastrous budget cuts to our nations non-defense federal agencies, and the elimination of the funding for the National Endowment for the Arts, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, and the National Endowment for the Humanities, reside in the Bay Area, including Jerry Hume. Basic American Foods and Basic American Inc., are two large corporations owned by wealthy Heritage Foundation member Jerry Hume and his brother George Hume. Jerry Hume is kind enough to have several products that people can boycott in protest against the activities of Jerry Hume, and the Heritage Foundation.

Jerry Hume has a brother and business partner named George Hume, who also presently serves as the vice chairman of the San Francisco Opera Association, despite the fact that the recent $54 billion in budget cuts being promoted by Trump and the Heritage Foundation, targets the National Endowment for the Arts, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, and the National Endowment for the Humanities for termination. People should demand that George Hume should resign from his position as the vice chairman of the San Francisco Opera Association because of the proposed budget cuts proposing the elimination of the NEA, CPB, and NEH, that are being supported by the Heritage Foundation, and his brother/partner Jerry Hume.

Additionally, Nersi Nazari is a Trustee of the Heritage Foundation who resides in a spacious four bedroom home and property in Atherton, that is valued at $7,070,538. Nersi Nazari spends BIG MONEY on political campaign contributions to the right-wing fascist Republican Party, and is the owner of several large corporations.

Other catastrophic budget cuts being proposed by the Trump regime and the Heritage Foundation, will have a severe impact on the nation for years to come if they are enacted into law. The proposed budget cuts also and threatens thousands of low-income renters in Oakland with higher rents, or evictions from their affordable housing.

Lynda Carson may be reached at tenantsrule [at] yahoo.com

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