Arts Advocacy Week 2026: Day One
Ed. note: Welcome to Arts Advocacy Week in South Carolina, as organized by the South Carolina Arts Alliance. The Hub will be amplifying messages from the SCAA, our partner, as they highlight the different ways that the arts help build a stronger South Carolina. As a state agency, the South Carolina Arts Commission does not engage in or promote or encourage specific advocacy efforts, including and especially those pertaining to the SCAC, but we do provide public information related to our work, budget requests to the executive and legislative branches of state government, and general issues affecting arts and creativity in our state. The following information falls into the “public information” and “general issues” categories.
Today is all about how the arts are making a difference at the community level. Check out the resources we have below to get your bearings, and start thinking about how you can advocate for the arts this week!
You can help spread the word about the amazing work that arts organizations do in your community. Spotlight them on social media, or make plans to attend a local event!
Follow the SCAA on social media to tune into more advocacy content:
- Facebook.
- Instagram.
- Join the celebration using the Social Media Toolkit.
The arts make a BIG impact at a local level.
72% of Americans believe that “Arts and culture provide shared experiences with people of different races, ethnicities, ages, beliefs, and identities.” While 78% believe “the arts are a positive experience in a troubled world” (Americans for the Arts).
Research has demonstrated that a high concentration of the arts in a city leads to greater civic engagement, more social cohesion, higher child welfare, and lower poverty rates (University of Pennsylvania).
Nearly one-half of the nation’s healthcare institutions provide arts programming for patients, families, and staff. 78% delivered these programs because of their healing benefits to patients – shorter hospital stays, better pain management, and less medication (The Joint Commission).
The arts can heal the mental, physical, and moral injuries of war for military service members and veterans — who rank creative arts therapies in the top four interventions and treatments (Americans for the Arts).