By Sean Battle

Rescind. Defund. Disappear.

I have heard these words within the last three-and-a-half months more than I care to admit. I also knew they were coming. 

Many were warned: do not let them back in the White House. Not after the first term. Not after the attempted insurrection. And yet, in November of 2024, many citizens decided Kamala Harris was unfit to be president. Some of those same people may have been a poet looking to fund their trip to a writing retreat; a painter in need of supplies and an affordable studio; a filmmaker who needs a grant to complete their documentary. 

Since January 20, 2025, the consequences of their actions of inaction have been unveiled. 

My heart dropped near my legs when I saw the National Endowment of the Arts (NEA) change the guidelines of some of their grants to where the applicant can no longer challenge America (read, tell the truth). Rather, with an extended deadline all applicants must give love and appreciation to the very Declaration of Independence the Republican administration I’m sure wants to rip to shreds. 

Not too long after, the Kennedy Center—a national beacon of an institution for the arts—was taken over via the current president naming himself as leader of the board. As of today, an entire team focused on highlighting diversity, equity, and inclusion within the arts was let go, leaving no checks and balances so the only art made accessible and acceptable are sculptures of the president in unrealistic yet “heroic” poses. 

“None of this is Newark though,” some may say, like they don’t complain about fluctuating prices in supermarkets as we enter a trade war. 

And yet, when I hear about funding for museums and libraries being targeted for having federal funding frozen or straight up taken back, I can’t help but think about the Harriet Tubman monument right across from the Newark Museum of Art. I can’t help but gulp as our current mayor runs for governor, and the fear of either his current seat—let alone the governor’s seat—turning red. Every facet of Newark, projected to be a global arts hub, will change one way or another. 

A friend of mine has long said, “a poet is just a human being who knows how to put words together.” Her partner, a fellow educator, has said in regard to anything elections and politics, “be your own hero.” I keep both of those statements in mind, for the administration’s impact on the arts is the impact on everyone’s livelihoods. The yo-yo movement of tariffs has already started to impact small businesses and how people consume. Should brick and mortar businesses have to shut down, that is one less place that may want to move chairs around to create an open mic stage. It’s also less jobs that pay curators, so funding and sustaining such shows would come out of pocket. 

And even if they could qualify for grants like the NEA—which speaks to such a focus on non-profit entities when not every arts collective should be operating under that model—the rules being changed so suddenly has widened one’s existence from the goalpost even further. It’s almost as if some institutions never gave a damn about diversity, equity, and inclusion in the arts or any field, and were looking for permission to drop the mask.

But for every entity where that is the case, there are others still in the fight. I saw Lauren LeBeaux Craig, executive director of Newark Arts, speak on a panel last year regarding the future of funding and of the arts in Newark. She and other panelists hinted at new ways they are looking into supporting themselves and their community should a change in City Hall bring less excitement about the arts than what we have currently (with our mayor, a poet and son of Amiri Baraka). 

Meanwhile, there are still artists creating new partnerships that others haven’t thought of. The Yard, a private social club on South Orange Avenue, hosts an open mic once a month with poet Craig Bradley as its producer and host. I didn’t even know that place existed; the only Yard I knew was the restaurant owned by Kai Campbell in Military Park, which houses live jazz and producer showcases. 

All of this to say, those who want to, will. Even before this administration, I have seen art spaces come and go. What hasn’t changed is the amount of audacity and willingness to innovate that has kept the arts alive in Newark. It’s not the big institutions that do it in the end, although they do help if they choose to. But as flimsy as that is, most artists and art lovers keep their feet planted underground, gatherings swelling organically into a movement.

You can’t rescind all barters. You can’t defund audacity. And try as they might one individual at a time, you can’t make creativity fully disappear.

Sean Battle is the CEO & founder of EvoluCulture Ventures, a Newark-based integrated arts organization, and the host of its flagship event, Evolution Dopen Mic. He also holds an MFA in Creative Writing-Poetry and a BA in English from Rutgers University. Battle’s first single, “Bulletproof Vest Incorporated,” can be found on Bandcamp, and his fourth poetry collection, “On the Right Side,” can be found on EvoluCulture.com.