Wednesday, September 16, 2020

Weekly Advocacy Alert, September 16: Take the Census!

By Dance/NYC

FEDERAL

1. Advocate for arts and culture. Tell your representatives what you need:
a. Last week Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell proposed a trimmed-down COVID-19 stimulus bill. The ‘skinny’ bill did not pass in the Senate. There are still very different ideas about what is needed to help during COVID-19 from both the House and Senate. There is concern that there will be no more COVID-19 bills for a while.
i. Find your representatives and tell them how COVID-19 is impacting you and that COVID-19 relief is desperately needed.
ii. Call the Capitol Switchboard at (202) 224-3121 and ask to be connected to your Senators and Representatives.

b. Become An Arts Hero
i. Be an #ArtsHero is an intersectional grassroots campaign comprised of Arts & Culture workers, Unions, and institutions in the United States pushing the Senate to allocate proportionate relief to the Arts & Culture sector of the American economy.
  ii. Follow and Amplify Be an #ArtsHero on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.
  iii. Download and share Be an #ArtsHero’s social media images.
  iv. Learn more at https://beanartshero.com

2. Updates on Federal:
a. Department of Homeland Security announces increases on visas for touring artists - September 10, 2020
i. Fees to obtain visas, which cover individual artists and groups and allow them to work for a period of time in the U.S., will be increased by around 50%.
ii. A O visa, which applies to "Individuals with Extraordinary Ability or Achievement," will increase in price from $460 to $705, a 53% increase.
iii. A P visa, which generally applies to groups or "culturally unique" artists, will increase from $460 to $695, a 51% increase.

3. Dance/USA Virtual Allyship Training: Join Dance/USA’s Service Never Sleeps Allyship Workshop, an Allyship Workshop facilitated by Service Never Sleeps. This workshop is a virtual two day training on October 27-28 from 2-4:30pm EST.

4. National Arts in Education Week: Join Americans for the Arts for #BecauseofArtsEd Chat September 16 7pm ET with Annette Bening, Denyce Graves-Montgomery, Josh Groban, and Rep. Suzanne Bonamici on the power of arts education.

NEW YORK STATE

1. NYS Cultural Spaces Reopening Taskforce:
a. NYSCA is working with the Flexible Multidisciplinary Cultural Spaces Taskforce to support venue reopening. Fill out their survey to help their taskforce

2. Sign the Open Letter from NYC Small Business Owners to State and City Leaders: The Western Queens Small Business Coalition has written an open letter to NYS Governor Cuomo, Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins and Assembly Speaker Carl M. Heastie, Mayor Bill de Blasio, and Council Speaker Corey Johnson regarding urgent matters threatening small businesses.
a. Sign the Open Letter

3. Updates on COVID:
a. On September 10th there were 474 total hospitalizations. Of the 89,722 tests reported yesterday, 880, or 0.98 percent, were positive. To maintain these low numbers, New Yorkers must continue to practice social-distancing, regular hand-washing, and wearing masks.
b. If you are experiencing COVID symptoms or believe you were exposed to someone who tested positive for COVID, get tested. Find a testing site near you.

NEW YORK CITY

1. Testify at City Council: Committee on Economic Development Jointly with the Committee on Cultural Affairs, Libraries and International Intergroup Relations Hearing on Thursday, September 24, 2020 at 10:00 .am. EST.
a. Learn more at legistar.council.nyc.gov
b. Register to offer testimony. Please note members of the public can sign up to testify at virtual public hearings via Zoom Web and/or via Phone at least 24 hours in advance of hearing. Written testimony may be submitted up to 72 hours after the hearing has been adjourned.

2. Take the Census:
a. If you don’t take the census, the city will not receive sufficient federal funding to support its citizens and the arts! Please complete the Census if you have not already!

3. MTA Updates: Starting Monday, September 14, 2020, the MTA will issue a $50 fine to riders who refuse to wear a mask on public transportation.

4. COVID-19 Testing: Find a location to get tested at nyc.gov/covidtest.

5. Dance/NYC hosts weekly dance field-wide calls to address our questions, needs, and plans for the future as a field. Calls occur every Thursday, 4:00 pm. – 5:00 p.m. Register!