NEH Union - AFGE L3403
@nehafge3403.bsky.social
Unit of AFGE Local 3403 representing staff at the National Endowment for the Humanities.
Local 3403 represents federal workers supporting art, research, and culture across the United States and territories.
Local 3403 represents federal workers supporting art, research, and culture across the United States and territories.
Pinned
Want to see the scope of what the NEH grant terminations is? The ACH ( @ach.bsky.social ) has compiled a database: impact.ach.org
NEH Grants 2025
NEH Grants 2025
impact.ach.org
Every grant listed here represents hundreds of hours of work: from our applicants who submit proposals, to the program staff and peer reviewers who read them, to the grant managers who oversee awards.
Are we just supposed to accept the abrupt termination of all this labor? #NEH #humanities
Are we just supposed to accept the abrupt termination of all this labor? #NEH #humanities
Deeply disturbing news for cultural preservation and historical reckoning: "A few years ago, the United States led the world in restoring stolen history — and it mattered." - Attorney Bradley Gordon
archived: archive.is/5C5Yu
archived: archive.is/5C5Yu
NEW - The Trump admin has disbanded its federal cultural property investigations team and reassigned the agents to immigration enforcement, delivering a blow to one of the world’s leaders in heritage protection, according to multiple ppl familiar with the changes.
www.denverpost.com/2025/11/06/u...
www.denverpost.com/2025/11/06/u...
The U.S. was a leader in cultural heritage investigations. Now those agents are working immigration enforcement.
Homeland Security Investigations, the department’s investigative arm, once had as many as eight agents in its New York office investigating cultural property cases.
www.denverpost.com
November 7, 2025 at 12:12 AM
Deeply disturbing news for cultural preservation and historical reckoning: "A few years ago, the United States led the world in restoring stolen history — and it mattered." - Attorney Bradley Gordon
archived: archive.is/5C5Yu
archived: archive.is/5C5Yu
Seems our federal dental and vision insurance benefits program didn't get the memo that the National Endowment for the Humanities fired 70% of our staff, rendering "Open Enrollment" irrelevant for most of us. 🤨 Is there any end to these insults? #NEH
November 5, 2025 at 9:32 PM
Seems our federal dental and vision insurance benefits program didn't get the memo that the National Endowment for the Humanities fired 70% of our staff, rendering "Open Enrollment" irrelevant for most of us. 🤨 Is there any end to these insults? #NEH
"The professors I’ve talked to here are bewildered and sad and unclear what is happening," said [history professor Say Burgin] in May. She said that it was hard to know how to fight back and how long the cuts would continue. #NEH #BoardingSchools @nnabshc.bsky.social @dickinsonmedia.bsky.social
Government funding cuts to NEH impacts Dickinson faculty
Since May, The Dickinsonian has been speaking to faculty and campus groups affected by the Trump administration’s cuts to academic funding. This article specifically explores the impact on humanities ...
thedickinsonian.com
November 3, 2025 at 10:42 PM
"The professors I’ve talked to here are bewildered and sad and unclear what is happening," said [history professor Say Burgin] in May. She said that it was hard to know how to fight back and how long the cuts would continue. #NEH #BoardingSchools @nnabshc.bsky.social @dickinsonmedia.bsky.social
"Everything that is happening is so chaotic, sometimes I feel like we’re living in a dystopian future,” #Portland Opera General Director Sue Dixon told @orartswatch.org #Oregon #NEH #NEA
The Trump Administration's assault on arts, culture, and the humanities has hit arts groups hard in the pocketbook. The fight for free expression could end up in the Supreme Court.
As federal funding slashes cut deep, Oregon arts organizations face growing challenges • Oregon ArtsWatch
The Trump Administration's assault on arts, culture, and the humanities has hit arts groups hard in the pocketbook. The fight for free expression could end up in the Supreme Court.
www.orartswatch.org
October 31, 2025 at 8:05 PM
"Everything that is happening is so chaotic, sometimes I feel like we’re living in a dystopian future,” #Portland Opera General Director Sue Dixon told @orartswatch.org #Oregon #NEH #NEA
Staff at the National Endowment of the Humanities made up just a small fraction of the federal civil service, but the loss has been incalculable - both for our agency, now nearly decimated, and for the American public who benefit from the #humanities, culture, history, and more. #NEH
Trump's latest milestone: Forcing more than 211,000 people out of their federal jobs since January.
A near-decimation of the federal workforce in nine months.
“He is, in essence, taking our government to bankruptcy.” www.huffpost.com/entry/trump-...
A near-decimation of the federal workforce in nine months.
“He is, in essence, taking our government to bankruptcy.” www.huffpost.com/entry/trump-...
Trump’s Latest Milestone: Forcing 211,000 People Out Of Their Federal Jobs
“The performance of our government across the board is being diminished,” warned Max Stier, CEO of Partnership for Public Service.
www.huffpost.com
October 30, 2025 at 6:00 PM
Staff at the National Endowment of the Humanities made up just a small fraction of the federal civil service, but the loss has been incalculable - both for our agency, now nearly decimated, and for the American public who benefit from the #humanities, culture, history, and more. #NEH
We don't even know what to say. Federal workers deserve better. ALL people deserve better.
The US government shut down 30 days ago. WIRED spoke with more than a dozen federal workers who have struggled to pay bills, worked side gigs, and relied on free food programs to get by. www.wired.com/story/federa...
Federal Workers Are Barely Making It Through the Government Shutdown
The US government shut down 30 days ago. WIRED spoke with more than a dozen federal workers who have struggled to pay bills, worked side gigs, and relied on free food programs to get by.
www.wired.com
October 30, 2025 at 1:20 PM
We don't even know what to say. Federal workers deserve better. ALL people deserve better.
"Other arts organisations that have cut staff over the past few months include the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) and the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS)." #NEH #NEA #IMLS #LosAngeles
Los Angeles' KCRW cuts ten percent of staff as White House ends federal aid · News ⟋ RA
Among the affected staffers at the radio station are prominent DJs like Travis Holcomb, Jason Kramer, Jeremy Sole and José Galván.
ra.co
October 29, 2025 at 12:42 PM
"Other arts organisations that have cut staff over the past few months include the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) and the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS)." #NEH #NEA #IMLS #LosAngeles
We hate that this is the reality for so many culture workers in libraries, archives, and museums; the loss of our livelihoods is staggering. We're standing in solidarity with you and wishing you strength. ✊🙏
Another bummer of a post from me, about how expensive it is to be laid off. 📚 acrlog.org/2025/10/24/t...
I'm sorry to keep existing and keep being miserable so publicly. I wish I were not doing either of those.
I'm sorry to keep existing and keep being miserable so publicly. I wish I were not doing either of those.
The High Cost of Being Laid Off - ACRLog
As I mentioned in my last post, I was laid off from my job as a librarian at Northwestern University in July, along with 200 other employees. I’d like to take the opportunity to write about the costs ...
acrlog.org
October 28, 2025 at 11:07 PM
We hate that this is the reality for so many culture workers in libraries, archives, and museums; the loss of our livelihoods is staggering. We're standing in solidarity with you and wishing you strength. ✊🙏
"In a time of federal contraction, there is an acute need for local- and state-level resources—from governments, philanthropies, and the private sector—to demonstrate how arts and culture can strengthen and sustain thriving communities." #NEH #NEA #IMLS @urbaninstitute.bsky.social
Understanding the Impact of Arts and Culture on Communities through Local Data
Assessments of the value of arts and culture that incorporate local knowledge, data creation, and engagement can produce locally relevant insights while offe…
www.urban.org
October 28, 2025 at 12:47 PM
"In a time of federal contraction, there is an acute need for local- and state-level resources—from governments, philanthropies, and the private sector—to demonstrate how arts and culture can strengthen and sustain thriving communities." #NEH #NEA #IMLS @urbaninstitute.bsky.social
"The #Wisconsin #Humanities board decided that because serving you and the rest of our statewide community always comes first, with your support we will stretch the resources we have today (and hope to add to)." - Exec. Dir. Dena Wortzel ✊ #NEH @jhiggy.bsky.social
archived: archive.is/evXxf
archived: archive.is/evXxf
Despite funding cuts, Wisconsin Humanities has a plan and a pathway for 2026
Threatened this year by funding cuts, Wisconsin Humanities has a plan for 2026, with options to ramp up programs if federal dollars are restored.
www.jsonline.com
October 28, 2025 at 12:16 AM
"The #Wisconsin #Humanities board decided that because serving you and the rest of our statewide community always comes first, with your support we will stretch the resources we have today (and hope to add to)." - Exec. Dir. Dena Wortzel ✊ #NEH @jhiggy.bsky.social
archived: archive.is/evXxf
archived: archive.is/evXxf
The National Endowment for the Humanities has added an "America 250" logo to its website, confirming its focus and purpose as remaining staff (and specially-appointed staff) work through the shutdown. #NEH
October 27, 2025 at 12:40 PM
The National Endowment for the Humanities has added an "America 250" logo to its website, confirming its focus and purpose as remaining staff (and specially-appointed staff) work through the shutdown. #NEH
Reposted by NEH Union - AFGE L3403
People in the DMV have been hit hard by illegal & cruel gov't firings, RIFs, & now, the shutdown. People working for gov't contractors whose work is stopped usually don't get back pay.
USDA is refusing to use $6 billion in contingency funds to pay SNAP benefits.
We have to take care of each other
USDA is refusing to use $6 billion in contingency funds to pay SNAP benefits.
We have to take care of each other
October 26, 2025 at 9:46 PM
People in the DMV have been hit hard by illegal & cruel gov't firings, RIFs, & now, the shutdown. People working for gov't contractors whose work is stopped usually don't get back pay.
USDA is refusing to use $6 billion in contingency funds to pay SNAP benefits.
We have to take care of each other
USDA is refusing to use $6 billion in contingency funds to pay SNAP benefits.
We have to take care of each other
"As painful as this is financially, what is more so is the diminishment of our revered national agencies and their staff after decades of service in elevating our national creativity, innovation and cultural contributions." - Kristy Edmunds, Dir. #MassMOCA #NEH #NEA
US went from having the first Native chair of the NEH to devastating cuts to Native artists and orgs
ictnews.org/arts-enterta...
ictnews.org/arts-enterta...
A changing Native art world under the Trump administration - ICT
‘These actions in combination with their rhetoric are unnerving, and are but one of many challenges at hand and to come’
ictnews.org
October 26, 2025 at 7:53 PM
Reposted by NEH Union - AFGE L3403
Ironic, not to mention tragic, that this far-right rewrite should come on the 60th anniversary of Congress passing, and LBJ signing into law (9/29/65), the National Arts and Humanities Act, which created the twin endowments (NEA and NEH) now under fire.
October 26, 2025 at 2:45 PM
Ironic, not to mention tragic, that this far-right rewrite should come on the 60th anniversary of Congress passing, and LBJ signing into law (9/29/65), the National Arts and Humanities Act, which created the twin endowments (NEA and NEH) now under fire.
"Authoritarians always target art first. They do so, because art and history are enemies of the myths a regime needs to survive."
An essential read for your Sunday morning. Thank you, @andrewjweinstein.com #NEH #NEA
An essential read for your Sunday morning. Thank you, @andrewjweinstein.com #NEH #NEA
This isn't chaos. It's a plan. The defunding of the NEA, the gutting of the NEH, and the capture of the Kennedy Center are straight from the Heritage Foundation's 'Project 2025' playbook. Read my latest TIME article to see why this cultural attack demands our attention.
Trump’s Campaign to Defund the Arts—and Rewrite History
"The campaign to defund the arts, capture our museums, and rewrite our history is a prelude to silencing dissent."
time.com
October 26, 2025 at 1:10 PM
"Authoritarians always target art first. They do so, because art and history are enemies of the myths a regime needs to survive."
An essential read for your Sunday morning. Thank you, @andrewjweinstein.com #NEH #NEA
An essential read for your Sunday morning. Thank you, @andrewjweinstein.com #NEH #NEA
Reposted by NEH Union - AFGE L3403
It’s hard to believe that Obama wearing a tan suit drew more of an outrage than Trump destroying the East Wing.
But here we are.
100,000s of feds vilified & traumatized. Entire agencies gutted. Health care costs rising exponentially. The White House being destroyed. Where will the line be drawn?
But here we are.
100,000s of feds vilified & traumatized. Entire agencies gutted. Health care costs rising exponentially. The White House being destroyed. Where will the line be drawn?
October 22, 2025 at 10:20 PM
It’s hard to believe that Obama wearing a tan suit drew more of an outrage than Trump destroying the East Wing.
But here we are.
100,000s of feds vilified & traumatized. Entire agencies gutted. Health care costs rising exponentially. The White House being destroyed. Where will the line be drawn?
But here we are.
100,000s of feds vilified & traumatized. Entire agencies gutted. Health care costs rising exponentially. The White House being destroyed. Where will the line be drawn?
National Endowment for the Humanities staff - and other cultural agencies like #IMLS and #NEH - dedicated our careers to protecting and preserving heritage and history.
Now the same administration that terminated our careers is literally destroying heritage and history in real time. #NEH
Now the same administration that terminated our careers is literally destroying heritage and history in real time. #NEH
Dramatic photos show construction equipment tearing into the East Wing façade and windows, though the federal agency that oversees such projects has not approved President Trump's 90,000-square-foot, $250 million ballroom. n.pr/48AUON2
The White House starts demolishing part of the East Wing to build Trump's ballroom
Dramatic photos show construction equipment tearing into the East Wing façade and windows, though the federal agency that oversees such projects has not approved President Trump's 90,000-square-foot, $250 million ballroom.
n.pr
October 21, 2025 at 8:11 PM
"Culture entails both extraordinary arts and ideas and ordinary everyday activities and beliefs, forming the connective tissue between individuals and their communities, as well as between different kinds of groups and collectives."
If you read nothing else on this Friday night, let it be this.
If you read nothing else on this Friday night, let it be this.
the US govt has mounted a repeal of the right to culture. There is simply no other way to understand dismantling Dept of Ed, PBS, NPR, NEH, NEA + IMLS, defunding universities, censorship of artists, attack on equal access to institutions,+ erosion of free speech.
hyperallergic.com/1049388/how-...
hyperallergic.com/1049388/how-...
How to Protect Your Right to Culture
The United States government’s coordinated repeal of the right to culture has grave consequences for the texture of our daily lives. But there are ways to fight back.
hyperallergic.com
October 17, 2025 at 9:21 PM
"Culture entails both extraordinary arts and ideas and ordinary everyday activities and beliefs, forming the connective tissue between individuals and their communities, as well as between different kinds of groups and collectives."
If you read nothing else on this Friday night, let it be this.
If you read nothing else on this Friday night, let it be this.
"The goal is to create a unified strategy and list of priorities to present with the Legislature to support the arts, culture, and humanities going forward," - CACO Sen. Advisor Sue Hildick @orartswatch.org re; the Big Re/Think #Oregon #arts #humanities #OR #NEH
oregonculture.org/about-us/big...
oregonculture.org/about-us/big...
A new statewide initiative, launched this fall, addresses the obstacles facing nonprofit arts organizations during political and funding uncertainties.
The Big Re/Think seeks to advocate for the arts, culture, and humanities • Oregon ArtsWatch
A new statewide initiative, launched this fall, addresses the obstacles facing nonprofit arts organizations during political and funding uncertainties.
www.orartswatch.org
October 16, 2025 at 5:14 PM
"The goal is to create a unified strategy and list of priorities to present with the Legislature to support the arts, culture, and humanities going forward," - CACO Sen. Advisor Sue Hildick @orartswatch.org re; the Big Re/Think #Oregon #arts #humanities #OR #NEH
oregonculture.org/about-us/big...
oregonculture.org/about-us/big...
Former fed friends, too. It's always kind to check in. #solidarity
For those who are NOT Feds, make sure you check on your Fed friends. Either we are working for nothing or we are struggling with being on a forced vacation. While there may be advantages, it’s not all it’s cracked up to be.
October 16, 2025 at 1:19 AM
Former fed friends, too. It's always kind to check in. #solidarity
"Arts and culture thrive in the light, but we are resilient and committed in darkness." - Patricia Wilson Aden, Pres. & CEO of the Greater #Philadelphia Cultural Alliance #NEH #NEA #IMLS #humanities #arts #Pennsylvania
@phillygaynews.bsky.social 🏳️🌈 🏳️⚧️ ✊
@phillygaynews.bsky.social 🏳️🌈 🏳️⚧️ ✊
Greater Philadelphia Cultural Alliance receives funding to defend democratic values - Philadelphia Gay News
William Penn Foundation awarded $10M to Philly nonprofits, including Greater Philadelphia Cultural Alliance amid federal funding threats.
epgn.com
October 15, 2025 at 11:23 PM
"Arts and culture thrive in the light, but we are resilient and committed in darkness." - Patricia Wilson Aden, Pres. & CEO of the Greater #Philadelphia Cultural Alliance #NEH #NEA #IMLS #humanities #arts #Pennsylvania
@phillygaynews.bsky.social 🏳️🌈 🏳️⚧️ ✊
@phillygaynews.bsky.social 🏳️🌈 🏳️⚧️ ✊
"Maine Humanities Council allowed me to pave a path for veterans’ mental health and wellness. We talk about how it’s OK to not be OK." - Santanu Basu, book group organizer at #Maine #Humanities #NEH
archived: archive.is/FBqSF
archived: archive.is/FBqSF
Students in my prison study group are as devoted as my best university students. I can't overstate how much people in prison value books. An NEH-sponsored program to get prisoners reading & talking about books is now in trouble as T admin cuts agency funding. www.pressherald.com/2025/10/14/i...
In Maine State Prison, these book groups are led by incarcerated people
The Maine Humanities Council works with nearly a dozen incarcerated people in state prisons to run regular book groups, including a recent discussion at the Maine State Prison on Lois Lowry's 'The Giv...
www.pressherald.com
October 15, 2025 at 1:02 AM
"Maine Humanities Council allowed me to pave a path for veterans’ mental health and wellness. We talk about how it’s OK to not be OK." - Santanu Basu, book group organizer at #Maine #Humanities #NEH
archived: archive.is/FBqSF
archived: archive.is/FBqSF
The National Endowment for the Humanities did so much with such a small a slice of the pie, we were basically working from crumbs.
Yet that service was the very model of resilience - of our staff and our applicants and grantees. #NEH
Yet that service was the very model of resilience - of our staff and our applicants and grantees. #NEH
Again, it is worth keeping in mind when comparing the rate of discoveries that public funding for medicine and the sciences is orders of magnitude larger than for the humanities. We work slow in part because we work on a shoestring.
October 14, 2025 at 12:56 PM
The National Endowment for the Humanities did so much with such a small a slice of the pie, we were basically working from crumbs.
Yet that service was the very model of resilience - of our staff and our applicants and grantees. #NEH
Yet that service was the very model of resilience - of our staff and our applicants and grantees. #NEH
Thank you for saying this - yes, many former #NEH staff are still looking for work, and it's particularly dire in Washington, DC, where so many civil servants have been cut off from their jobs.
We were the luckiest, though, in having one another as colleagues.
We were the luckiest, though, in having one another as colleagues.
So many people reached out in support, often offering whatever they could to help me find my next thing. I know other colleagues at NEH experienced the same.
I'm profoundly lucky to have landed in an amazing new role, when I know many more-talented former NEH colleagues are still looking.
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I'm profoundly lucky to have landed in an amazing new role, when I know many more-talented former NEH colleagues are still looking.
+
October 14, 2025 at 2:06 AM
Thank you for saying this - yes, many former #NEH staff are still looking for work, and it's particularly dire in Washington, DC, where so many civil servants have been cut off from their jobs.
We were the luckiest, though, in having one another as colleagues.
We were the luckiest, though, in having one another as colleagues.
"We are all in this together. We need to help each other out if we’re all going to get through this,” - Tom Parrish, managing director of #Berkeley Rep, whose #NEA grant was rescinded this Spring. #California #EastBay #NEH #arts #humanities
Arts in the East Bay
In the face of economic uncertainty and attendance struggles, creative leaders share their renewed vision for the local cultural scene.
www.diablomag.com
October 13, 2025 at 1:39 PM
"We are all in this together. We need to help each other out if we’re all going to get through this,” - Tom Parrish, managing director of #Berkeley Rep, whose #NEA grant was rescinded this Spring. #California #EastBay #NEH #arts #humanities