Actor Jeffrey Wright and Congressman James E. Clyburn Honored by Americans for the Arts at the 35th Nancy Hanks Lecture on Arts and Public Policy

WASHINGTON, March 18, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Award-winning actor and Academy Award nominee Jeffrey Wright delivered Americans for the Arts' 35^th Nancy Hanks Lecture on Arts and Public Policy on March 12 in Washington, D.C.   

Nolen Bivens, President and CEO of Americans for the Arts, said, "The arts are the most important asset that we have in our nation—they are necessary for our economy, our education, and our cultural identity."

During the lecture, Wright addressed his recent film and Academy Award nomination for American Fiction, discourse about racial equity in the U.S., the start of his acting career, and talked about his production We Are Not Done Yet, which tells the stories of veterans who discover the healing power of the arts as they find resilience in the face of post-traumatic stress through arts workshops at Walter Reed National Military Hospital. During the conversation, Wright said, "I think the scarcest resource, not just here but in many places, is vision of the way forward. Artists can provide that because everything is born of the imagination."

Congressman James. E Clyburn (SC) was honored with the 2024 Congressional Arts Leadership Award, from Americans for the Arts and the United States Conference of Mayors, presented by  Congressman Hakeem Jeffries, House Minority Leader. The award recognizes an elected official who has consistently advocated for expanding federal support for the arts and culture and arts education. In his remarks, Clyburn said, "We've got to figure out how to make this great country's greatness accessible and affordable for all of its citizens, and one of the best ways I know to do that is to recognize the artistic nature of the cultures that exist in this country."

The audience included members of Congress, including Suzanne Bonamici (Oregon) and Michael Brenner (Colorado), AFTA Board members, President and CEO Nolen Bivens, musician Ben Folds, and MSNBC's Symone Sanders Townsend. Watch the event on-demand here.

Established by AFTA in 1988, the Nancy Hanks Lecture on Arts and Public Policy is the leading national forum for arts policy intended to stimulate dialogue on policy and social issues affecting the arts. Prior speakers have included Maya Angelou, Yo-Yo Ma, Rita Moreno, and Robert Redford, among others.

CONTACT: Mariaesmeralda Paguaga [email protected]

SOURCE Americans for the Arts (AFTA)