Trump administration terminates California Humanities funding, halting cultural projects

The California Humanities has announced that it has placed all its programs on pause after its funding was terminated last week.

“We were told that the ‘NEH is repurposing its funding allocations in a new direction in furtherance of the President’s agenda,'” said the announcement from the nonprofit organization, which partners with the National Endowment for the Humanities in order to support California’s heritage, arts, and cultures.

The move to terminate the California Humanities’ federal funding has already had devastating downstream effects for smaller nonprofits.

Chris Clarke, executive director and founder of the Desert Advocacy Media Network and host of the Southern California-based desert advocacy podcast “90 Miles From Needles,” was planning an in-depth documentary about the Amargosa River — the only free-flowing river in the Death Valley region — and its importance to the American Southwest.

“Our organization was selected to receive $50,000 in matching funds to produce a documentary on the Amargosa River, but that grant was suspended due to the National Endowment for the Humanities pulling funding from California Humanities,” said Clarke, who is based in Joshua Tree.

“We are extremely grateful to California Humanities, and we hope the cut to their funding can be reversed. 

“Meanwhile the Amargosa Basin, the most biologically diverse place in the American deserts, is under existential threat from mining for lithium and gold, as well as energy development. We still hope to bring the issue to the public  in whatever way we can, but the Trump administration just made that far more difficult.”

Clarke, a veteran California journalist, launched “90 Miles From Needles” and DAMN as a way to offset ongoing journalism layoffs and shutterings of news organizations across the country, leaving American desert regions without coverage. The documentary grew out of that effort.

“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,” wrote Shonda Moore, California Humanities’ director of marketing and communications, in a Friday blog post.

“Let’s stand for education, the IMLS, the Kennedy Center, CPB, the Smithsonian, and the National Archives.”

Donations to the California Humanities nonprofit can be made here. Donations to DAMN can be made here.