Save the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH)

As directed by the Trump administration and DOGE, more than 1,200 grants that support culture and history programs across the country have been cut by the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH), and over 80% of the agency’s workforce staff at the NEH were placed on paid administrative leave effective immediately. Millions of dollars of previously approved funding were stripped from NEH grants that support state humanities councils, cultural organizations, museums, historic sites, archives, libraries, and educators. Michael McDonald, who became acting director of the agency in March, said that 85% of the agency’s hundreds of current grants were to be canceled including grants that have already been awarded. He also suggested that, going forward, the agency would focus on “patriotic programming”.

Americans for the Arts and The National Humanities Alliance (NHA), a nationwide coalition advocating for the humanities on campuses, communities, and Capitol Hill, have made statements condemning the cuts. “Cutting NEH funding directly harms communities in every state and contributes to the destruction of our shared cultural heritage.” Between 2022 and 2023, the arts and culture sector grew at more than twice the rate of the overall economy, contributing $1.2 trillion to the U.S. economy—4.2% of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP)—and supporting 5.4 million jobs.

Call your representatives to push back against DOGE and enforce the congressionally mandated funding of the NEH.

A special thanks to the American Musicological Society for requesting and contributing to this topic.