Although years may really just be a number, in its 31 years, Arts Advocacy Day has seen six different U.S. presidents spanning both political parties. It’s witnessed sixteen different congressional sessions and eight different Speakers of the U.S. House. Through it all, every year, attendees hear that “the arts are bipARTtisan.”

Because, no matter who’s in office, arts advocacy matters. Funding decisions are made every year. Who’s deciding this year may not be deciding next year. Who’s to remember what happened before? Who’s to know why it matters? Who’s to learn from each other? The answer is us. All of us. All of us together.

Often those attending for the first time are students, learning and eager to participate and carry on the work back home, to their college campuses, and into their first post-college jobs.

Arts Advocacy Day is coordinated by Americans for the Arts in partnership now with 90 national arts organizations. The two-day event brings together a broad cross section of America’s cultural and civic organizations. Attendees travel to Washington, DC, for a day of training and networking, followed by a day of action on Capitol Hill, where they meet as delegations with their members of Congress, in support of issues like arts education, charitable giving, and funding for the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA).

Read more about Arts Advocacy Day by Kate McClanahan at ARTS Blog