It was a real surprise to learn last week that Chicago lawyer Kareem Dale would be appointed President Barack Obama’s White House staff adviser on arts and culture. The news came in a New York Times story by Robin Pogrebin, with comment from former National Endowment for the Arts chair and Obama arts transition team leader Bill Ivey, who called the prospective appointment “a big step forward.”
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Dale had been national disability director for the Obama campaign, and word is that although he hadn’t been a high-profile player in disability rights prior to that, he did a fine job of networking with the community. Sources expressed confidence that he’d make an excellent liaison, and be able to catch up quickly on any policy background he might lack.
Meanwhile, the arts community was eagerly awaiting news of a White House advocate to call its own. During the heady days of the campaign, when Obama was being touted as the arts candidate, there was even a push for a cabinet-level secretary of the arts. The idea was floated by Quincy Jones, debated on the nation’s editorial pages (would it lead to too much government interference?), and supported with an online petition signed by some 239,000 people. And when a coalition of 16 national arts umbrella organizations presented the newly elected Obama administration with an agenda, high on the list was a proposal for a senior-level assistant to the president, responsible for coordinating the federal government’s “fragmented” hodgepodge of arts and cultural policies. While the coalition stopped short of demanding a cabinet seat, it’s unlikely that it thought the job could be handled as an add-on duty for a full-time disability warrior whose arts credentials seem to be limited to a five-year stint as a theater company board chair and membership on Obama’s campaign arts policy committee.
She also said, “We still believe President Obama will be the arts president.” If that’s the case, Mr. President, then unlike the other situations you’re facing, this is easy. Disability and the arts each need their own point person. Fix it.
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