“Why Eliminating the NEA Would Be a Disaster For Our Country:” Pauline Chalamet ’14 for the Hollywood Reporter

Pauline Chalamet ’14, actress, producer, and Bard alumna, writes for the Hollywood Reporter about the vital importance of the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) and how eliminating it would be devastating to small and rural arts organizations. Chalamet, who recently lobbied Congress on behalf of arts funding, discusses how it supports initiatives such as local jazz festivals, museums exhibitions, arts education, and community theater, which enrich cultural identity and stimulate local economies that would otherwise lack access to major donors or sponsorships. If it weren’t for the NEA, she says, she may not have pursued life as an actor herself. “Arts funding is often the first thing to be cut by governments, when in fact it should be protected as essential,” Chalamet writes. “Creativity gives us purpose. Imagination advances humanity. The arts foster empathy, understanding, and connection. Access to creative expression—whether through dance, music, painting, theater, or film—helps us communicate on a deeper level and provides a bridge into the shared experience of what it means to be human.”

Post Date: 05-20-2025