The Humanities in the Eyes of Texas and Florida Politicians
Abstract: This is an extension to the March 2016 4Humanities study “What U.S. Politicians Say About the Humanities: White Paper on the Humanities in Political Discourse, 2009-2015,” which examined United States political discourse during 2009 to 2015 in the legislative and executive branches of the federal government and also the legislative branch of one state (California) to discover how politicians talk about the humanities. By now analyzing records from state legislatures in the second and third most populated states behind California (Texas and Florida), 4Humanities concludes that the humanities do not always figure in U.S. political discourse in a drama of “recognition.” Both Texas and Florida state legislators frequently drafted bills referencing the humanities during 2009 to 2015 that created substantive change. This is different than in California, where state legislators in the same years overwhelmingly recognized the humanities just through resolutions.
This study was published on 4humanities.org.