IWP’s work is in the national interest

The University of Iowa’s International Writing Program, according to the U.S. Department of State, no longer aligns with the “national interest”

Along with that abrupt verdict came word that the program would lose $1 million in federal funding. Now, the writing program will be forced to cancel its summer programming and cut its graduate staff. The prestigious fall term of the writers’ program will continue, but its enrollment will be cut in half.

The International Writer’s Program began 58 years ago, has hosted more than 1,600 writers and produced three Nobel laureates. Most attendees were funded with grants from the State Department and related agencies.

The idea the program no longer fits the national interest is a misguided and shortsighted pronouncement. Its goal has been to conduct cultural diplomacy by bringing writers from around the world to Iowa City to collaborate and learn from one another.

Those collaborations have served the national interest by building bridges between nations and enhancing America’s image in the world. It seeks to bringing peace through art and was strongly supported by the late U.S. Rep. Jim Leach, who saw its value to international relations.

It’s a big reason Iowa City was designated a “City of Literature by the United Nations Education, Scientific and Cultural Organization, UNESCO.

“At a time of international upheaval, the best thing we can do is to form alliances with the people in other countries, and there is no more effective way to do so than through arts and culture,” said Iowa City UNESCO City of Literature Executive Director John Kenyon. “I would love to see our congressional delegation fight for this Iowa institution, and for Iowans both native and in spirit to rise up in support with their voices and their wallets.”

But the national interest changed has changed dramatically under President Donald Trump. The Department of Government Efficiency or DOGE, headed by billionaire Elon Musk, has been wiping out functions funded by countless government agencies, including USAID, which provides food and other aid to countries struggling with war, natural disasters and famine. Studying a changing climate playing a large role these disasters is another subject no longer in the national interest.

It's a sad saga, playing out around the nation.

We, of course, hope the State Department rethinks this small funding cut that will have a big impact on cultural diplomacy.

A spokesperson for U.S. Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks said her office had “reached out to senior leaders at the State Department and the administration for more information and expressed concern on behalf of the IWP.”

Our congressional delegation must do far more to stop the Trump administration from defunding an iconic Iowa institution of international importance.

(319) 398-8262; editorial@thegazette.com