Advocacy & Public Policy Committee News v. 11 n. 3, March 2025

Advocacy & Public Policy Committee News support the committee's mission to monitor governmental activities and social justice issues affecting the professional interests of ARLIS/NA and to keep the ARLIS/NA membership informed. The monthly alerts are intended to be conversation starters, help members keep up on public policy issues and alert members to new developments. The articles compiled in the News Alerts bring to the forefront recent news from a range of perspectives designed to elicit discussion; they are not compiled to represent the views of ARLIS as an organization or the members of the Advocacy and Public Policy Committee.

Previous issues can be found here: https://www.arlisna.org/news/appc-news-alert 

Special News Alert: Trump Administration and Cultural Heritage

The Arts

• Cassady, Daniel. “NEA Retreats on ‘Gender Ideology’ Pledge for Grant Applications, But Restrictions Remain.” ARTnews, March 10, 2025.

• Farfan, Isa. “ACLU Sues NEA for Enforcing Trump’s Anti-Trans Mandate.” Hyperallergic, March 6, 2025.

• Farfan, Isa. “Small Arts Nonprofits Face Uncertainty as NEA Cuts “Challenge America” Grant.” Hyperallergic, March 5, 2025.

• Ho, Karen K. “Trump Portrait at Colorado State Capitol to Be Taken Down After President Slams It as ‘Distorted.’” ARTnews, March 25, 2025.

• Hosie, Duncan. “A Very Trumpian Moral Panic Has Struck the Art World.” The New Republic, March 10, 2025.

• Gelt, Jessica. “Trump Executive Order Targets the Smithsonian over ‘Divisive, Race-Centered Ideology.’” Los Angeles Times, March 28, 2025.

The IMLS

• American Library Association. “ALA Statement on White House Assault on the Institute of Museum and Library Services." ALA, March 15, 2025.

• Institute of Museum and Library Services. “Keith E. Sonderling Sworn in as Acting Director of Institute of Museum and Library Services.” PRNews Wire, March 20, 2025.

• Limbong, Andrew. “Federal Agency Responsible for Library and Museum Funding Gets a Visit from DOGE.” NPR, March 20, 2025. 

• Mauro, Paula. “Tracking the Trump Administration’s Attacks on Libraries.” American Libraries Magazine, March 19, 2025.

• Press Release. “New England Archivists Condemn Trump Administration’s Actions Jeopardizing the Integrity of National Archives, Historic Sites, and History Education.” New England Archivists, Accessed March 10, 2025.

• Sutton, Benjamin. “Trump Appoints Deputy Secretary of US Labor Department to Lead Museum-Funding Agency Marked for Elimination.” The Art Newspaper, March 20, 2025. 

Miscellaneous

• Binkley, Collin and Jake Offenhartz. “Trump Demands Unprecedented Control at Columbia, Alarming Scholars and Speech Groups.” AP News, March 14, 2025.

• Farfan, Isa. “Trump Pushes Out First Native Chair of National Endowment for the Humanities.” Hyperallergic, March 13, 2025. 

Art & Activism

• Aton, Francesca. “The Black Lives Matter Mural Is Being Dismantled in Washington, D.C.” ARTnews, March 11, 2025.

• Farfan, Isa. “After Republican Threats, DC Begins Removal of Black Lives Matter Mural.” Hyperallergic, March 10, 2025.

• Farfan, Isa. “Artists and Cultural Workers Protest Arrest of Mahmoud Khalil.” Hyperallergic, March 11, 2025.

• Farfan, Isa. “This Brooklyn Artist Has a Plan for Tesla’s Shitty Cybertrucks.” Hyperallergic, March 18, 2025.

• McGrady, Clyde, and Tim Arango. “Black Lives Matter Plaza Is Gone. Its Erasure Feels Symbolic.” The New York Times, March 16, 2025.

• Pontone, Maya. “Charlottesville Nonprofit Seeks Artists to Transform Melted Robert E. Lee Statue.” Hyperallergic, March 3, 2025.

• Stromberg, Matt. “Protest Painting Calls Out Fossil Fuel Industry’s Role in LA Fires.” Hyperallergic, March 12, 2025.

Copyright & Licensing; Open Access

• Belanger, Ashley. “OpenAI Declares AI Race ‘over’ If Training on Copyrighted Works Isn’t Fair Use.” Ars Technica, March 13, 2025. 

• Brittain, Blake. “Meta Says Copying Books Was ‘fair Use’ in Authors’ AI Lawsuit.” Reuters, March 25, 2025.

• Ho, Karen K. “Pirated-Books Database LibGen, Which Meta Used to Train AI, Includes Books By Artists, Architects, Galleries and Museums.” ARTnews, March 20, 2025. 

• Reisner, Alex. “The Unbelievable Scale of AI’s Pirated-Books Problem.” The Atlantic, March 20, 2025.

• Reisner, Alex. “Search LibGen, the Pirated-Books Database That Meta Used to Train AI.” The Atlantic, March 20, 2025.

Funding

• Farfan, Isa. “SFMOMA Gets $1.5M From Google for Ruth Asawa Exhibition.” Hyperallergic, March 13, 2025.

• Hall, Christina. “Michigan libraries, museums brace for loss of federal funds after Trump executive order.” Detroit Free Press, March 24, 2025.

• Ho, Karen K. “Art Museums Spend A Median of $82 Per Visitor, But Bigger Isn’t Always Better: Report.” ARTnews, March 21, 2025.

• Kaeding, Danielle. “Small Wisconsin libraries might be hit hard as Trump targets federal funding.” Wisconsin Public Radio, March 27, 2025.

• Tebben, Susan. “Ohio public libraries, State Library of Ohio, brace for funding uncertainty, hope for budget relief.” Ohio Capital Journal, March 25, 2025.

• Villa, Angelica. “Nvidia CEO’s Foundation Rescues Ailing California College of the Arts with $45 M. Boost.” ARTnews, March 7, 2025. 

Intellectual Freedom/Access to Information

• Aton, Francesca. “Texas Drops Case Against Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth, Sally Mann.” ARTnews, March 26, 2025.

• Dunbar, Francess Archer. “Miami Beach Cinema Targeted by Mayor Speaks Out: ‘We Don’t Want To Leave.’” Hyperallergic, March 14, 2025.

• Nayyar, Rhea. “Mexican Artist Decries ‘Censorship’ of Queer Nun and Priest Portraits.” Hyperallergic, March 5, 2025.

• op de Beeck, Nathalie. “Library Futures Investigates Content Bans in Research Databases.” Publishers Weekly, March 10, 2025.

• Solomon, Tessa. “RISD Shutters Show of Pro-Palestine, Anti-Colonial Art.” ARTnews, March 27, 2025.

Technology and Digital Privacy

• Cassady, Daniel. “Christie’s AI Art Sale Defies Controversy, Surpasses Expectations.” ARTnews, March 5, 2025.

• Cooper, Gael. “Christie’s First-Ever AI Art Auction Earns $728,000, Plus Controversy.” CNET, March 6, 2025. 

• Di Placido, Dani. “The ChatGPT, AI-Generated Studio Ghibli Trend, Explained.” Forbes, March 27, 2025.

• Lawson-Tancred, Jo. “Backlash Against A.I. Art Forces Artists To Defend Their Work.” Artnet News, March 4, 2025.

Workplace

• Di Liscia, Valentina. “Brooklyn Museum Pauses Layoffs, But Workers Not Out of the Woods.” Hyperallergic, March 24, 2025.

• Durón, Maximilíano. “MoMA Made a Solid Choice for Its Next Director, But Not an Inspiring One.” ARTnews, March 31, 2025. 

• Pontone, Maya. “Tate Museums Cut Staff by 7%, Citing Post-Pandemic Deficit.” Hyperallergic, March 14, 2025.

• Pontone, Maya. “SF Museum Workers Push Back Against Proposals to Slash Staff.” Hyperallergic, March 12, 2025.

• Stringer-Holden, Bridget. “Vancouver Art Gallery Announces Departure of CEO Anthony Kiendl.” CBC News. March 27, 2025.

This issue of News Alerts was compiled by Michele Jennings, Stephanie Kays, Torie Quiñonez, and Annie Sollinger.