Lady Gaga has been named co-chair of the President’s Committee on the Arts and Humanities, which was dissolved during the Trump administration reinstated by President Biden last year. The newly revived panel also includes creatives like Jon Batiste, Shonda Rhimes, Jennifer Garner, and Anna Deavere Smith on the list of names added to the panel.
Established by Ronald Reagan, the President’s Commission on the Arts and Humanities in 1982 advises the President on cultural policy and makes recommendations to the National Endowment for the Humanities, the National Endowment for the Arts, and the Museum and Library Services Institute. The 24-member group includes the aforementioned entertainment personalities as well as such scholarly figures as historian Philip J. Deloria and biographer Arnold Rampersad. Gaga will co-chair the committee alongside producer Bruce Cohen, while Zion Wolde Michael will serve as executive director.
In 2017, then-members of the committee submitted a letter of resignation in the aftermath of the Charlottesville riots, decrying Trump’s “support of hate groups and terrorists who have killed and injured American citizens.” Trump later threatened to dissolve the National Endowment for the Arts and the National Endowment for the Humanities after arguing that the group “is not a responsible way to spend America’s tax dollars,” even though the two funds continue to receive millions of dollars in federal support. The newly restored commission will be funded by the Museum and Library Services Institute as well as raise money for its activities.
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Lady Gaga has always had a cordial relationship with President Biden. The singer sang at a car rally during his 2020 campaign, then sang the national anthem at his inauguration — wearing a bulletproof dress, for that matter.
