3 Simple Ways to Advocate for the Arts
There is nothing that captures the attention of public officials more than the hometown constituent point of view. This means your voice—as an arts board member, administrator, patron or audience member—carries a special power that can boost understanding of the arts.
Here are three simple ways you can start advocating for the arts.
1) Congratulate the winners
Once the public officials representing your state house and senate districts are sworn in, drop them a note to congratulate them on their election success. The note can be brief and it need not ask for anything. Instead, your goal is to establish contact and show that the arts are important to the electorate.
It doesn’t matter whether you share a public official’s party affiliation or voted for them. Hearing from you at the outset of a term will set a positive tone for future consideration of policies and funding decisions affecting the arts.
Addresses can be found on your state legislature’s website. Or try Cicero, an online database that provides state and federal officials’ postal and email addresses, phone numbers, websites and social media channels.
An initial note has even more power if a follow-up communication reinforces the connection. Good times to drop another line to your public official are when you receive a grant from your state arts agency or launch a new program or initiative. Use these occasions to describe the impact of the arts on you or your organization.
2) Extend an invitation
Arts events allow politicians to directly experience what your organization does. While witnessing the impact of your work firsthand, public officials will take note of the enthusiasm that your work garners among participants. They also may spot friends and supporters in the crowd.
- Invite a public official (and their family) to attend a performance, exhibition, community arts event or school activity.
- Acknowledge the presence of the official at the event.
- Thank the official for funding your state arts council.
- Take a photo that the official can display in their office or share on social media.
Invitations work especially well when your legislature is out of session, when many public officials return to their home districts. If your event includes any special activities for donors such as a reception, backstage tour or introductions to performers, consider including the public official. Please review the rules on event attendance for public officials and the rules on giving gifts to public officials to ensure that you are familiar with ethics rules.
3) Give prominent credit
If you are a state arts agency grantee, your award will come with requirements for acknowledging support from the state through use of a logo or special language. This is far more than a bureaucratic exercise—it’s an essential way of showing what public arts funding accomplishes. Securing public funding is an achievement, so wear it with pride! Place your state arts agency’s logo in a prominent spot on your website and in materials (don’t bury it at the back). Also consider celebrating your award in your newsletter or via social media channels.
Engage in Ongoing Advocacy
When you follow the steps above you become a constituent with a relationship the public official recognizes. This makes your participation in later advocacy efforts doubly meaningful. Here are pathways to further involvement:
- Sign up for our newsletter to receive regular communications from DAA.
- Attend events like National and Delaware Arts Advocacy Days.
- Keep us apprised of interactions you have with elected officials and follow us on social media!