Advocacy
House Hearing on Visa Policy
The House Government Reform Committee held a hearing April 4, 2006, on "The Impact of Visa Processing Delays on the Arts, Education, and American Innovation." The internationally known cellist Yo-Yo Ma spoke to the committee about how delays in visa processing have had a negative impact on the arts community. Other participants included representatives of the business community, another sector impacted by the delays in visa processing.To read more, please visit http://reform.house.gov/GovReform/News/DocumentSingle.aspx?DocumentID=41680.
Freelancers Union Study on New York's Creative Workers
According to a recent Freelancer's Union report, New York's creative sector--among them artist, composers, illustrators, photographers, and writers--is facing increasing economic uncertainty related to a lack of stable employment. While arts organizations generated $14.5 billion for the city's economy in 2000 and the creative economy generated over 150,000 jobs in 2001, more than 40 percent of creative workers reported making less than $35,000 last year, half have little to no personal savings, and over a third lack proper health insurance. Ninety percent cited "unstable income" as the major disadvantage of their chosen profession, and more than three quarters avoided seeking medical care when uninsured. All these factors, the study suggests, means that the city's creative class--including its emerging artists--may leave New York in favor of cities with a "lower cost of living and developing creative centers."
To read more, go to www.workingtoday .org/stf/pdf/arts_report_2006.pdf.
