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
"The [Colonial Pennsylvania Farmstead] found out through news reports [that their National Endowment for the Humanities grant was terminated], and its repeated inquiries to the agency about the grant were never returned." #NEH #Pennsylvania #humanities
A Delaware County museum wanted to 'expand the narrative' around slavery. Under the Trump administration, the funding disappeared.
Oct. 31—Drive into Ridley Creek State Park through the gold October foliage and around the sharp turns of Sandy Flash Drive, and you'll find yourself in the past. That is,
www.lancasterfarming.com
November 26, 2025 at 1:59 PM
"The [Colonial Pennsylvania Farmstead] found out through news reports [that their National Endowment for the Humanities grant was terminated], and its repeated inquiries to the agency about the grant were never returned." #NEH #Pennsylvania #humanities
Last year at this time, National Endowment for the Humanities staff were gearing up to make the calls to award grants that were recommended at the November 2024 Nat'l Council.
This year, 70% of #NEH staff are fired, 85% of Nat'l Council members are fired, and nearly all grants are terminated. #DOGE
This year, 70% of #NEH staff are fired, 85% of Nat'l Council members are fired, and nearly all grants are terminated. #DOGE
Last year at this time, I had just learned that I would receive a 12-month NEH, and I was excitedly starting to lay plans for a year of research. DOGE halted those plans by canceling my grant outright. Now DOGE is gone too, having accomplished nothing but harm to others. What a year.
November 24, 2025 at 9:05 PM
Reposted by NEH Union - AFGE L3403
This times so many.
As well as destroying the lives of our former NEH colleagues. All for naught.
As well as destroying the lives of our former NEH colleagues. All for naught.
Last year at this time, I had just learned that I would receive a 12-month NEH, and I was excitedly starting to lay plans for a year of research. DOGE halted those plans by canceling my grant outright. Now DOGE is gone too, having accomplished nothing but harm to others. What a year.
November 24, 2025 at 3:27 PM
This times so many.
As well as destroying the lives of our former NEH colleagues. All for naught.
As well as destroying the lives of our former NEH colleagues. All for naught.
Reposted by NEH Union - AFGE L3403
The question we keep tossing back and forth is, what was it all for?
Break it because they could. Ruin lives because they could. Be inhumane jerks without reprisal because they could.
The cruelty is and always has been the point.
www.reuters.com/world/us/dog...
Break it because they could. Ruin lives because they could. Be inhumane jerks without reprisal because they could.
The cruelty is and always has been the point.
www.reuters.com/world/us/dog...
www.reuters.com
November 24, 2025 at 3:31 PM
The question we keep tossing back and forth is, what was it all for?
Break it because they could. Ruin lives because they could. Be inhumane jerks without reprisal because they could.
The cruelty is and always has been the point.
www.reuters.com/world/us/dog...
Break it because they could. Ruin lives because they could. Be inhumane jerks without reprisal because they could.
The cruelty is and always has been the point.
www.reuters.com/world/us/dog...
Reposted by NEH Union - AFGE L3403
The world lost a very kind, smart, & curious person in David Weinstein. He served as an NEH Senior Program Officer in the Div of Public Programs for 25 years. www.washingtonjewishweek.com/david-weinst...
David Weinstein
On Nov. 14, David Michael Weinstein of Rockville, Maryland, devoted father, husband and friend, died peacefully at home.
www.washingtonjewishweek.com
November 17, 2025 at 2:27 PM
The world lost a very kind, smart, & curious person in David Weinstein. He served as an NEH Senior Program Officer in the Div of Public Programs for 25 years. www.washingtonjewishweek.com/david-weinst...
This is part of the justification for firing 70% of #NEH staff.
‘7-figure awards are a rarity’ they say, but a $10.3 million award was given out, and I bet it’s gonna be big awards or small ones that don’t require approval from now on
November 16, 2025 at 4:05 AM
This is part of the justification for firing 70% of #NEH staff.
"I teach a class called 'Introduction to Digital Humanities,' and the National Endowment for Humanities is one of the government organizations that is affected by the cuts. [Is] my research going to be funded anymore? ...the answer is probably no." - Liz Polcha #Philadelphia #Pennsylvania #NEH
Educators rally at McCormick’s office to defend federal funding - The Triangle
Labor unions and higher education organizations rallied at Senator Dave McCormick’s offices to protest his support for funding cuts.
www.thetriangle.org
November 14, 2025 at 8:14 PM
"I teach a class called 'Introduction to Digital Humanities,' and the National Endowment for Humanities is one of the government organizations that is affected by the cuts. [Is] my research going to be funded anymore? ...the answer is probably no." - Liz Polcha #Philadelphia #Pennsylvania #NEH
In case anyone's wondering: National Endowment for the Humanities staff, 70% of whom were terminated this summer, are not included in the concessions for reopening the government. Only RIFs that occurred during the shutdown will be reversed.
We're still fired. And it's still wrong. #NEH
We're still fired. And it's still wrong. #NEH
The RIF parts are good for federal workers. But they concede a lot.
Thing is, the RIFs all year were lawless. There are complex procedures to follow to use RIFs to fire people. It is clear those procedures were NOT followed. A lower court strongly ruled the RIFs were illegal. And SCOTUS dodged. 1/
Thing is, the RIFs all year were lawless. There are complex procedures to follow to use RIFs to fire people. It is clear those procedures were NOT followed. A lower court strongly ruled the RIFs were illegal. And SCOTUS dodged. 1/
The only exception to that is with respect to reductions in force (RIFs). The bill appears to both roll back RIFs announced during the shutdown and prevent any further RIFs between now and Jan 30.
November 13, 2025 at 12:32 PM
In case anyone's wondering: National Endowment for the Humanities staff, 70% of whom were terminated this summer, are not included in the concessions for reopening the government. Only RIFs that occurred during the shutdown will be reversed.
We're still fired. And it's still wrong. #NEH
We're still fired. And it's still wrong. #NEH
Reposted by NEH Union - AFGE L3403
“Writing workshops, documentary film screenings, and reading and discussion programs help veterans, their families, and the broader public better understand and appreciate military experiences.”
www.statehumanities.org/9-ways-human...
www.statehumanities.org/9-ways-human...
9 Ways Humanities Councils Serve and Honor Veterans - Federation of State Humanities Councils
Here are just a few examples of the many ways humanities councils serve and honor veterans.
www.statehumanities.org
November 11, 2025 at 11:41 PM
“Writing workshops, documentary film screenings, and reading and discussion programs help veterans, their families, and the broader public better understand and appreciate military experiences.”
www.statehumanities.org/9-ways-human...
www.statehumanities.org/9-ways-human...
"Given that the Trump Administration has gutted the #NEH, defunded NPR, and shut down the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, it’s difficult to see how public media can mount anything as ambitious as was achieved a half century ago."
archived: archive.is/0TXmu
archived: archive.is/0TXmu
The nation’s semiquincentennial is upon us. In a year marked by political violence and fear, the prospects for a peaceful anniversary appear remote. https://newyorkermag.visitlink.me/a2fJKz
November 11, 2025 at 1:14 PM
"Given that the Trump Administration has gutted the #NEH, defunded NPR, and shut down the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, it’s difficult to see how public media can mount anything as ambitious as was achieved a half century ago."
archived: archive.is/0TXmu
archived: archive.is/0TXmu
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