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Guest Blog: Harlem Arts and Culture by Michael Unthank

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The following article has bee contributed by Michael Unthank, Executive Director, Harlem Arts Alliance. (October is National Arts and Humanities Month.)

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It has been repeated so often the words ring in our ears: “…This is the worst economy our nation has seen in decades.”  In December of 2008 as President Obama prepared to take office, everyone acknowledged that the economy was teetering on the brink of financial collapse. 

In this environment it’s tough to talk about the arts and get people to listen. There are too many competing priorities. Should we talk about the needs of artists when homelessness is on the rise?  Why worry about cultural organizations when our schools are in decay?  The truth is when Wall Street was raking in trillions, and it seemed the balloon of our economy would expand forever; we did not solve the problems of the needy or our schools.  The truth is in today’s economy the arts are part of the solution, not part of the problem.

In Harlem we know that our community is defined by the arts.  Our artists and our arts organizations make Harlem one of the top destinations for visitors and tourists in the region.  Our institutions stand as beacons attracting development and commerce. As one of the world’s best known communities, Harlem’s engine is its arts and culture.  Yet, our most visible and successful arts and cultural institutions don’t exist in a vacuum, and the health of our creative community depends on a broad diversity of artists, community activists and arts organizations large and small.
  
Today, as our communities remain firmly in the grip of a deep recession, many Harlem arts organizations struggle against ever increasing odds for adequate facilities, human resources, attention, and funding. The story of the important contributions that our organizations make to our community remains a well-kept secret, and so support for them remains a low priority. For example, this month during National Arts and Humanities Month, we find anticipated support allocated through the New York State Council on the Arts at a standstill and much of the funding from New York State committed in the previous fiscal year has apparently disappeared. 

This means that our organizations cannot fulfill the commitments they’ve made to provide important programs for our community’s audiences, our young people, and our seniors, our hospitals and our schools. Artists committed to working in the classroom or in the community center will not be paid for work they have already done in good faith. Other issues are critical as well; arts institutions are faced with the increasing costs of facilities, and struggle to keep their doors open for community members that need them more now than ever. 

We must renew our commitment to provide a strong voice for our own continued cultural development.  We must remember that it is organizations like the Harlem School of the Arts and Dance Theatre of Harlem that provide expert training for thousands of our young people whose programs are at risk.  It is Harlem Stage and Jazzmobile and the National Jazz Museum in Harlem that deliver outstanding performances year in and year out, employ our artists and enrich our communities.  These are the organizations at risk.

Above all, please remember that it’s our community that will ultimately suffer if our organizations are further weakened.  Harlem’s future cultural and economic vitality are directly linked to health of our artists and arts organizations.

None of us can do it alone, we must do it together.  That’s why during National Arts and Humanities Month we at the HARLEM Arts Alliance ask for your help.  Take this as a wake-up call and reach out to your local arts center, museum, theatre or dance company - find out how you can become involved and then get involved. 

Our organizations need volunteers to make phone calls, distribute flyers and to help serve refreshments at their events.  Of course they also need your financial contributions, positive word of mouth and you and your family members in  the audience.  None of us can do it alone, so become part of the solution and support your arts and cultural institutions.

 

Michael Unthank
Executive Director, Harlem Arts Alliance

The Harlem Arts Alliance is a non-profit organization advancing arts and culture in Harlem and surrounding communities.  To learn more visit: www.Harlemaa.org.
 

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