Watch Bernie Sander's video message to the Arts Action Fund here.
Presidential candidate Bernie Sanders expressed unflinching support for the arts and arts education in a video released to the Arts Action Fund on Monday, September 28. During the two minute video, the Senator from Vermont, who has been surging in multiple polls, repeats many of the same pro-arts positions he first articulated in a letter to the Iowa Arts Advocacy Caucus sent last month.
Sanders begins by explaining how as mayor of Burlington, he helped establish one of the nation's first municipally funded arts councils, in part to "harness the untold benefits that investment in the arts bring to communities." In fact, says the long-time lawmaker, "when I look back on my eight years as mayor, founding the Burlington Arts Council is one of my proudest achievements."
Sanders goes on to say that as a member of Congress he has been steadfast in his support for the arts (Sanders has receieved an A+ grade on all of the Arts Action Fund's Congressional Arts Report Cards).
Shortly after a minute into the video, the candidate for the Democratic nomination declares: "You have my promise that as president I will be an arts president. I will continue to advocate strongly for robust funding of the arts in our cities, schools, and public spaces." Sanders goes on to emphatically state, "Art is speech. Art is what life is about!"
The junior Senator from Vermont concludes by thanking arts advocates for their work, saying "your advocacy will help make sure that funding for the arts remains on the agenda during this presidential election and increases the chances that arts-friendly poilicies are adopted at all levels of government.
We couldn't agree more, Senator! Thank you for articulating your pro-arts position.
For more information about Bernie Sanders' history and positions on the arts, check out his Candidate Arts Memo here.