Making The Case For The Arts As A Jewish Communal Priority

THE JEWISH WEEK
By Joshua Ford

It is vital for arts institutions in the Jewish community, Jewish artists and the current generation of philanthropists that support the arts to begin articulating the argument that the support of the arts is not a distraction from the values the next generation of philanthropy seeks to support, but central to them. The announcement that the UJA-Federation in New York will not be renewing the innovative Six Points Fellowship Program is part of a trend that reveals that funding for the arts is falling even further down on our list of Jewish communal priorities. This is the challenge for the next generation of artists, philanthropists and institutions. While it is certain that artists will continue to create art – true artists have no other choice – whether we will harness those individual and collective energies into an asset for the Jewish community remains to be seen. [link]

Comments

Every community has that responsibility, and when they stop accepting that responsibility, they stop being a community.