PRESS CONFERENCE: ACE ACT
MEDIA ADVISORY
MASSCREATIVE TO HOLD LEGISLATIVE PRESS CONFERENCE WITH SENATOR PAUL MARK, REPRESENTATIVE DAN DONAHUE AND COMMUNITY ACCESS TO THE ARTS
WHEN:
Friday, July 28th, 2023 at 2:30 PM
WHERE: Community Access to the Arts
420 Stockbridge Rd
Great Barrington, MA 01230
Parking is available on site.
WHAT: MASSCreative, Sen. Paul Mark, Rep. Dan Donahue, and Community Access to the Arts invite you to join them for a press conference on H.151/S.113, An Act improving accessibility in the creative economy (the ACE Act) on Friday, July 28th at 2:30 pm in Great Barrington, MA. The event is open to the public.
In 2022, Open Door Arts and the Mass Cultural Council released their findings on the creative economy's state of accessibility in their report, “Towards a Culture of Access: Findings From the Massachusetts Arts & Culture Access Survey.”
Their report shows that while 1 in 4 adults and 1 in 2 adults ages 65+ in Massachusetts has one or more disabilities, the disabilities community continues to experience significant attitudinal, physical, and programmatic barriers keeping them from fully participating in opportunities offered by arts and culture organizations. The majority of survey respondents expressed that funding, staffing, facilities, skills, and training all impacted their potential to make venues and programs more accessible.
H.151/S.113 would establish the Accessibility in the Creative Economy (ACE) Fund to provide grants to organizations focused on the arts, culture, humanities, and interpretive sciences to remove barriers encountered by people with disabilities. By dedicating more funding through the Massachusetts Office on Disability specifically for cultural organizations, we can build a creative economy where everyone can enjoy and belong within the stories, performances, and installations present within our communities.
Registration is encouraged but not required. Register for the press conference HERE.
See the bill fact sheet HERE.
Contact information for the press conference:
Kelsey Rode
Director of External Relations, MASSCreative
413-206-6451
