April 4, 2025
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Shonda Moore
Phone: 951.963.4362
Email: smoore@calhum.org
On April 2, late in the evening, we learned that our funding from the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) was unexpectedly terminated. We were told that the “NEH is repurposing its funding allocations in a new direction in furtherance of the President’s agenda.” This happened after fifty years of California Humanities stewarding federal funds to fulfill our mission to connect Californians to ideas and one another in order to understand our shared heritage and diverse cultures, inspire civic participation, and shape our future.
The “Department of Government Efficiency” (DOGE) visited the NEH to enact radical cuts to staffing and operating and program budgets (your taxpayer dollars), including funding that had already been awarded to support countless programs in every state and territory of the United States. This is another effort of efficiency that will result in a systematic dismantling of the agencies that are designed to support learning, knowledge-building, preservation of history, celebrations of the wisdoms of our cultures—that is, no less than what helps us understand the meaning and value of our lives together as Americans.
The hollowing-out of the Department of Education that tracks the learning progress of our children and sustains our ability to have a system of higher education that is the envy of the world; the Institute of Museum and Library Services’ no longer being able to ensure access to libraries in every community and the preservation of our cultural heritage in museums; the threats to the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and nonpartisan reporting that is not profit-based, but truth-based; the attacks on the Smithsonian Institution and the National Archives threatening our ability to know our history and having transparency of government—all of this happening at this very moment and the planned destruction of the NEH is of a piece with this methodical take-down of what democracy is built on.
For 50 years, California Humanities, a nonpartisan affiliate of the NEH, has served as the cultural heartbeat of our state. In our history, we have supported 2,175 projects with funds totaling more than $44 million to connect people, preserve stories, and build bridges of understanding across communities. Through impactful programs like Humanities for All, the California Documentary Project, the Library Innovation Lab, Literature & Medicine, and Emerging Journalist Fellowships, we’ve empowered Californians to voice, frame, hear, and see their own experiences and to share them.
We are the only organization solely dedicated to supporting the public humanities in California. What does that mean? We give resources to the organizations and individuals who bring you family library programs, documentary films that uncover little-known CA histories, hospital staff who focus on their patients as people, not pathologies, and stories generated by local journalists, not AI. With over 90% of our funding tied directly to the NEH, these devastating cuts not only impact California Humanities but ripple across our entire state—weakening our ability as Californians to think critically, communicate effectively, and contribute meaningfully to our democracy.
But we are not surrendering. California Humanities joined 56 other state and jurisdictional councils to strategize how to work together to ensure no humanities council will shut its doors. Though we must put all of our programs on pause while we learn more about what all this means, we know the rule of law is being seriously challenged. We will do what we can to fight for our right to support you, your work, and your voice. We will be as transparent as possible to keep you informed as we learn more.
This is an assault on culture and democracy, and we need to safeguard humanity’s soul and intellect. Let’s stand for the humanities, the arts, and culture. Let’s stand for education, the IMLS, the Kennedy Center, CPB, the Smithsonian, and the National Archives.
What can you do? Stay informed. Stay connected. Stay engaged. Speak up for what you value and believe in. Let your Congressional and State legislators know what you think. We need your support now more than ever. In a few clicks, you can email your elected officials. Please help us by taking action to show your support, express your frustration, and spread the word.
The only way we will get through this is together. We could use your support to help keep the humanities alive in California. Please make a gift—no dollar amount is too small, as the future is uncertain. This is a battle we cannot fight alone.
Thank you for your commitment to knowledge, to truth, and to our democracy.
About California Humanities:
California Humanities is a nonprofit partner of the National Endowment for the Humanities. For 50 years, California Humanities has worked to connect Californians to ideas and one another, helping people learn about their shared history and culture through the humanities. To learn more, visit calhum.org, or like and follow on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and LinkedIn.
