The American Civil Liberties Union, along with several artists and theater companies, have initiated a legal action against a fresh condition attached to arts grants by the National Endowment for the Arts.
According to the latest stipulation, prospective grantees need to affirm that they won’t advocate for “gender identity beliefs” during their proposed projects, which are being evaluated for financial support. This condition was imposed following President Trump’s executive order declaring that there are only two genders, male and female, and suggesting that federal funds should not be utilized to promote gender identity ideologies.
This legal action, initiated by the American Civil Liberties Union on behalf of Rhode Island Latino Arts, National Queer Theater, The Theater Offensive, and Theatre Communications Group, contends that the funding condition set by the NEA infringes upon the protections provided by the First Amendment, the Administrative Procedure Act, and the Fifth Amendment.
The ACLU is requesting an initial court order, either a preliminary injunction or a temporary restraining order, prior to the submission deadline for grant applications on March 24th.
Vera Eidelman, an attorney at the ACLU, commented that the censorship of artists’ speech has caused a wave of impact throughout the entire artistic community, stretching from Broadway to local arts centers. According to her, funding from the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) is intended solely for artistic merit. Restricting eligibility for artists based on messages disliked by the government contradicts the NEA’s mission, violates the First Amendment’s protection against viewpoint discrimination, and undermines the role of art in our culture.
A multitude of theater professionals have penned a missive to the National Endowment for the Arts, urging them to discontinue compliance with instructions from President Trump and lift prohibitions on funding initiatives that champion inclusivity or gender identity.
According to the latest rules, an applicant cannot run any initiatives that focus on “diversity, fairness, and equality” either.
In the legal dispute, Rhode Island Latino Arts had intended to request NEA financing for a production of Faust, potentially starring a nonbinary actor or involving a narrative previously addressing LGBTQ issues. However, in order to secure funding, they are altering their project’s concept instead.
The New York-based National Queer Theater intends to seek financial support for the Criminal Queerness Festival, a theatrical event that began in 2019 and showcases pieces from playwrights hailing from nations where being queer is either outlawed or perilous.
As a passionate advocate for Criminal Queerness, I proudly declared, “I established this platform to provide a sanctuary for writers who face persecution and censorship in their homeland due to criminalization.” It’s an unfortunate twist of fate that we, ourselves, might be denied funding because our ‘gender ideology’ is under attack by the U.S. administration. These newly imposed restrictions pose a significant threat not only to our organization’s voice but also to artists globally whose identities have been criminalized, endangering their freedom of expression worldwide.
Read More
- Pop-Tarts and Krispy Kreme Kick Off 2025 With Collaborative Menu
- The First Trailer for The Weeknd’s ‘Hurry Up Tomorrow’ Film Is Here
- JJJJound’s Made in Germany adidas Superstars Drop This Week
- JPMorgan Sees Lower Demand for ETH ETFs Compared to BTC
- Rick Owens Gives RIMOWA’s Cabin Roller a Bronze Patina
- Nadaaniyan song Galatfehmi OUT: Ibrahim Ali Khan, Khushi Kapoor’s heartbreaking separation in love will leave you emotional
- Cookie Run Kingdom Town Square Vault password
- Alec Baldwin’s TLC Reality Show Got A Release Date And There’s At Least One Reason I’ll Definitely Be Checking This One Out
- MicroStrategy Goes Full Bitcoin: A Rebranding Tale!
- Ryan Gosling’s Star Wars Movie Here’s Everything We Know
2025-03-06 22:24