AAM Announces 2nd Museums Advocacy Day on Capitol Hill, March 22-23, 2010
Washington, DC, 8/19/2009 -

AAM will host museum advocates from around the country in Washington, DC on March 22-23 for Museums Advocacy Day 2010.  On the heels of the success of the first Museums Advocacy Day this past February, AAM is seeking to attract more than 300 museum professionals ─ including directors, staff, trustees, students, and independent professionals ─ to the nation’s capital to convey the value of museums to federal leaders.

 

The two-day program will brief participants on the museum field’s legislative agenda and train them in effectively communicating the value of museums to public policy makers. The objective is to get these advocates in front of members of Congress, and that is exactly what will occur on the second day, when advocates take their case to Capitol Hill.

 

“We cannot assume that members of Congress know all the ways in which museums are essential,” said AAM president Ford W. Bell.  “Museums Advocacy Day is such a terrific opportunity to bring this unified message to Capitol Hill, and I hope all segments of the museum field will be able to participate in 2010.”

 

Earlier this year, AAM’s first Museums Advocacy Day brought nearly 300 museum professionals to D.C., resulting in more than 270 visits between these inspired citizen-lobbyists and legislators and their staffs. Advocates represented a cross-section of the profession, encompassing all disciplines, job titles and experience levels.

 

This wide range of participants in this year’s Advocacy Day found the endeavor rewarding on many fronts. “Our Midwest delegation had excellent meetings with our members of Congress and their staffs,” reported Karen Witter, associate museum director of the Illinois State Museum. “We were all extremely enthusiastic about the value of the event.”

 

While AAM advocates for museums on Capitol Hill year-round, there is nothing like the power of a member of Congress hearing from one of his or her own constituents. “Members of Congress are there to serve the citizens in their state or district,” Bell said. “Communicating what local institutions are doing in local communities across the breadth of the country is an invaluable weapon in our advocacy arsenal.”

 

For more information about Museums Advocacy Day 2010, visit AAM’s Advocacy website: www.speakupformuseums.org.

 

Press Contact:
Dewey Blanton
202-218-7704
dblanton@aam-us.org

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