After President Donald Trump proposed eliminating the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), the federal agency withdrew or canceled grant offers to arts organizations around the country via email on Friday night, reported the New York Times.
“The N.E.A. is updating its grantmaking policy priorities to focus funding on projects that reflect the nation’s rich artistic heritage and creativity as prioritized by the president,” the emails said. “Consequently, we are terminating awards that fall outside these new priorities.”
The NEA said it would prioritize projects that “elevate” historically Black colleges and universities, as well as schools serving Hispanic students. The organization will also focus its resources on those that “celebrate the 250th anniversary of American independence, foster A.I. competency, empower houses of worship to serve communities, assist with disaster recovery, foster skilled trade jobs, make America healthy again, support the military and veterans, support Tribal communities, make the District of Columbia safe and beautiful, and support the economic development of Asian American communities.”
A number of the affected grants were in support of work by artists of color. The email’s language also appeared out of step with prior moves by the Trump administration, which has pushed back against diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives. As a result, the Smithsonian Institution and the National Gallery of Art began winding down their DEI operations.
The messages were sent to recipients from a NEA address that does not accept replies.
Two versions of the email were sent from the arts endowment. One went to those who received offer letters and had been recommended for grants, but had not yet received official awards. That version noted that “the tentative funding recommendation for the following application” had been canceled.
Those whose grants had been approved, however, received a different email that read, “This is to inform you that the above referenced National Endowment for the Arts award has been terminated, effective May 31, 2025.”
The Trump administration has also canceled of grants the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) and the Institute of Museum and Library Services, two agencies that Trump also proposed to eliminate in his 2026 budget.
Some begun pushing back against moves made by Trump to curtail arts funding. A pending lawsuit filed by three humanities-focused organizations aims to reverse the cuts in grant programs, staff, and divisions of the NEH that occurred in April. The suit was filed on May 1, the same day that a judge issued a temporary restraining order to block the Trump Administration‘s dismantling of the IMLS shortly before an expected round of layoffs impacting nearly all of the organization’s employees.
The future of arts funding, including the NEH and NEA, has been uncertain since Trump took office. In his first term as president, Trump tried and failed to eliminate funding for the NEH. At the time, the efforts were blocked by congressional Democrats and Republicans. In his second term, Trump has made strides to cultivate a new kind of art program, returning to more traditionally classical styles (an idea he toyed with in his first term but never implemented).
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