![\"\"](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/diacritical\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/trump-1350044_640.jpg?resize=285%2C300&ssl=1\")
The point, he said, was that values expressed by the arts sector seem so at odds with the populist nationalist Trump wave that one could view the election not only as a repudiation of the Obama agenda and Democrats but also of arts and culture more generally. The arts had failed to convince large segments of the American public that inclusion and diversity – as expressed by the arts sector – are important values. If the arts had been successful, then Trump would not have been elected.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It’s a provocative claim, and I’ll admit my first reaction was to dismiss it out of hand. How self-important. Does the larger culture care what values the arts hold? Do the arts have the kind of influence that they could swing an election, or have a significant, let alone determinative voice in any kind of national debate? Is the arts sector endorsement now a coveted political get for candidates, up there with the Teamsters or teachers unions?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
More problematic is an assumption that the arts have a coherent point of view and a set of values that finds expression in political action.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And yet why not? The arts sector has made something of a fetish of claiming that the arts are for everyone, that they make us “better,” that the arts are striving for diversity and inclusiveness. But are we? Politically diverse? Economically? Rurally (if there is such a word, but you know what I mean)? How everyone are we if half of the country sees our definition of diversity as a threat rather than an advantage? How inclusive are we if significant segments of the country feel that their values aren’t represented – or worse, attacked by the arts? How diverse are we if holding certain political ideologies are cause for being dismissed out of hand?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The 2016 election suggests that those values may be less than the universal truths that those in the arts might like to believe. Perhaps most important, it gives lie to the claim frequently made by the arts sector – that the arts are universal and that they are for everyone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Call me cynical, but I might suggest that every one of these suppositions is flawed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
If the arts were really for everyone and are inclusive and diverse (something of an aspirational mantra for the sector over the past several years), then the election shredded the notion. If the arts are for everyone, where were the 60+ million Trump voters? If the arts are so diverse and inclusive, where are the conservative views held by an enormous segment of population who seems to reject such definitions of diversity and inclusion? This largely white, largely male majority has long been the dominant cultural authority and wants to hold on to its power<\/p>\n\n\n\n
If we claim to be for “everyone” and yet we don’t reflect everyone in our communities, the claim is a lie. It’s as true when we don’t include people of color as it is when we wall off political points of view. The drumbeat of criticism of the arts establishment for not reflecting the racial\/ethnic\/gender\/economic diversity of its communities is entirely justified. However, is it also possible that a lack of political diversity in the arts may also be a missed – if extremely difficult to realize – opportunity?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And yet, what if the values are irreconcilable? What if the arts aren’t for everyone? What if it’s okay that they aren’t? If the arts are for everyone then they may be for no one.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
A few months ago I was at a conference of administrators of large arts institutions when a leading researcher in cultural trends made a bold claim: The election of Donald Trump is a result of the failure of the arts and culture sector.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2338,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[33],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-1625","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-arts-and-politics","8":"entry"},"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/diacritical\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/trump-1350044_640.jpg?fit=608%2C640&ssl=1","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p4ePZm-qd","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":3271,"url":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/diacritical\/2026\/02\/aj-chronicles-the-battles-for-who-gets-to-say-what-culture-is.html","url_meta":{"origin":1625,"position":0},"title":"AJ Chronicles: The Battles for Who gets to say what Culture Is","author":"Douglas McLennan","date":"February 28, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"Evidence abounds this week that the battles for culture are intensifying. Taken together, these tests of authority over cultural institutions are probes of where the line is, of how much self-censorship the cultural sector will perform without being explicitly required to.","rel":"","context":"In "AJ Chronicles"","block_context":{"text":"AJ Chronicles","link":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/diacritical\/category\/aj-chronicles"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/diacritical\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/alexei_other-electricity-4971002_640.jpg?fit=640%2C427&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/diacritical\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/alexei_other-electricity-4971002_640.jpg?fit=640%2C427&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/diacritical\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/alexei_other-electricity-4971002_640.jpg?fit=640%2C427&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":3254,"url":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/diacritical\/2026\/02\/aj-chronicles-the-metropolitan-opera-as-poster-child.html","url_meta":{"origin":1625,"position":1},"title":"AJ Chronicles: Metropolitan Opera as Poster Child","author":"Douglas McLennan","date":"February 21, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"My weekly pondering on arts and cultural stories for the week of February 22nd.","rel":"","context":"In "AJ Chronicles"","block_context":{"text":"AJ Chronicles","link":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/diacritical\/category\/aj-chronicles"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/diacritical\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/enric-domas-Q4OKvB2q_g8-unsplash-1.jpg?fit=800%2C466&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/diacritical\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/enric-domas-Q4OKvB2q_g8-unsplash-1.jpg?fit=800%2C466&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/diacritical\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/enric-domas-Q4OKvB2q_g8-unsplash-1.jpg?fit=800%2C466&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/diacritical\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/enric-domas-Q4OKvB2q_g8-unsplash-1.jpg?fit=800%2C466&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":867,"url":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/diacritical\/2016\/06\/dissent-on-afta-equity-statement.html","url_meta":{"origin":1625,"position":2},"title":"Sorry – A (Respectful) Dissent On A Well-Meaning Statement On Arts Equity","author":"Douglas McLennan","date":"June 6, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"I would say based on the thousands of stories we sift through every day at ArtsJournal, diversity and cultural equity (along with funding) are right now probably the biggest issues being talked about in the arts community. And rightly so. It's astonishing to see article after article documenting \u00a0inequalities in\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "cultural issues"","block_context":{"text":"cultural issues","link":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/diacritical\/category\/cultural-issues"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/diacritical\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/HappyNewYearFromAmericansForTheArts.png?fit=923%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/diacritical\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/HappyNewYearFromAmericansForTheArts.png?fit=923%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/diacritical\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/HappyNewYearFromAmericansForTheArts.png?fit=923%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.artsjournal.com\/diacritical\/wordpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/HappyNewYearFromAmericansForTheArts.png?fit=923%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":1305,"url":"https:\/\/www.artsjournal.com\/diacritical\/2017\/02\/is-the-institutionalization-of-our-arts-a-dead-end.html","url_meta":{"origin":1625,"position":3},"title":"Is The Institutionalization Of Our Arts A Dead End?","author":"Douglas McLennan","date":"February 16, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"In his essay looking back on Lincoln Center on its 50th birthday, Joe Horowitz suggests that the cultural citadel built optimistically\u00a0to be a launching pad for the American performing arts, might have turned out instead to be a box canyon. 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