Chairman
Chairman's Letter
International cultural diplomacy has become the overarching goal of the
President’s Committee on the Arts and the Humanities (PCAH). Working
with our cultural partners—the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA),
National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH), the Institute of Museum and
Library Services (IMLS)—PCAH focuses on the arts and the humanities
as a bridge to other cultures.
In September 2006, Mrs. Laura Bush and former U.S. Department of State
Under Secretary for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs, Karen Hughes,
announced the Global Cultural Initiative, which included PCAH’s
AFI Project: 20/20. This project introduces U.S. and foreign independent
filmmakers to each other, and allows them to share their work with audiences
in other countries. Filmmakers like J.B Rutagarama from Rwanda have expressed
their gratitude at sharing their stories in the United States and worldwide,
and the privilege of meeting fellow filmmakers. Rutagarama is committed
to building a stronger infrastructure for film in Africa and helping aspiring
African filmmakers share their stories. AFI Project: 20/20 brings together
the American Film Institute (AFI), the U.S. Department of State, and the
federal cultural agencies.
AFI Project:20/20 filmmaker J.B. Rutagarama
speaks with Chinese students during a recent visit and screening in
Hong Kong, which was part of a three-city tour. The tour by Rutagarama
and other filmmakers in the program was part of a cultural diplomacy
effort supported by the PCAH.
Collaboration between our cultural agency partners and the National Park
Service resulted in a U.S.-Mexico Cultural Communique, signed in El Paso,
Texas in 2007 and resulting in the first Sister Cultural Parks conference,
which was held at Mesa Verde National Park, a World Heritage site. This
conference focused on World Heritage sites in Mexico and the United States
that share cultural and spiritual roots. Mesa Verde Park Superintendent
Larry Weise told a story of a recent visit by the Tarahumara Indians of
Chihuahua, Mexico, who ran hundreds of miles on foot to Mesa Verde, which
is a holy site for them, in order to pray. Cultures are not defined by
borders and the spiritual connections of these places are not constrained
by national boundaries. Realizing these broader cultural connections,
which makes these parks ideal places for music, theatre and dance, was
a theme of this conference.
The cultural and spiritual connections between
World Heritage sites in the U.S. and Mexico are embodied in the blessing
given by Peter Pino (far right), governor of Zia Pueblo and representative
the 24 modern Tribes affiliated with Mesa Verde National Park.
In June 2007, I led the highest level cultural delegation to the People’s
Republic of China at the invitation of Minister Sun Jiazheng. There were
thirty-five members of the delegation, including the heads of the cultural
agencies, the State Department, the Librarian of Congress, and private
citizens. Minister Sun expressed gratitude at having everyone in the same
room, since it is difficult for a centralized government desiring cultural
exchange to find its way in a country as decentralized as the United States.
The visit linked U.S. agencies to cultural counterparts in China, and
a framework for collaboration was created through an Implementing Accord
for Cultural Exchange, 2007-2009, between the U.S. and the People’s
Republic of China.
While in China, Minister Sun told us of his interest in seeing other
parts of the United States since his visits to the U.S. were limited to
shuttling between hotels in New York, Los Angeles and Washington, D.C.
Consequently, the PCAH invited him as our honored guest to the 2007 Coming
Up Taller awards at the White House. From there I accompanied him with
the help of Southwest Airlines to Texas to visit the famed King Ranch,
a destination sparked in part by a gift the PCAH had given Minister Sun
in China, the two-volume history of The King Ranch, written by Tom Lea.
The minister enjoyed first-hand south Texas ranch life, seeing Santa Gertrudis
cattle, eating ranch food at a cowboy camp, and enjoying mariachis at
dinner. He then visited El Paso, a border city where he experienced the
coming together of two nations and their cultures, Mexico and the United
States. During his stay, he was to speak informally with a small group
at the Museum of Art, but was met by a crowd of 500 people. Apologizing
for not having prepared a speech, Minister Sun spoke from the heart, sharing
the history of his country and its relationship to the United States while
stressing the value of arts and culture as a bridge between peoples and
nations. Everybody understood.
Cultural diplomacy is alive and well in many of PCAH’s programs
from Coming Up Taller to our support for artist exchanges and performances
in China and Mexico. We look forward to more opportunities in 2008. Please
stay in touch by visiting www.pcah.gov and reading about new PCAH activities.
See also:
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