I look forward to this day every year. After interning for Minnesota Citizens for the Arts my senior year of college, I have been hooked on this event, and dedicated to it’s purpose. Every year I am met by some challenge, as I generally choose to join the team that visits the legislators in the relatively conservative South metro district where I grew up (35B). Despite this, I leave every arts advocacy day feeling inspired by how openly we can share our values in this country. Regardless of where you fall on any given issue, it is your right to share your opinions.
Today, the issue at hand was government funding of arts. Minnesotans are fortunate to have a transparent, well-regarded system for handling state-generated arts funding; the Minnesota State Arts Board and the Regional Arts Council system. Creators, performers, viewers, educators and students of any kind of art should be grateful for this system. To learn more about the process, visit www.mncitizensforthearts.org. If you couldn’t make it to Arts Advocacy Day today, you can still have your voice heard! Visit the following link to use the Desktop Lobby Center and write a letter to your legislators; http://www.capwiz.com/artsusa/mn/state/main/?state=MN.
Now, on to pouring this inspiration into upcoming projects! . . .
Erinn Liebhard: Dance Artist 