The humanities are not luxuries for quiet contemplation. They are the lifeblood of civil society. They teach us to listen, to question, to empathize, to lead with principle. They give our data meaning, our city’s identity, and our people dignity.
Let me be direct: this is not merely about funding literature, history, philosophy, or the arts. This is about preserving the soul of our society. And the business leaders in this region—the stewards of wealth, influence, and infrastructure—have a unique opportunity to lead.
Zora Neale Hurston once wrote:
“Research is formalized curiosity. It is poking and prying with a purpose.”
That purpose, for her, was to protect Black stories from erasure. To insist that Eatonville had as much to say about America as any seat of power. She understood what we must now remember: that knowledge—particularly cultural knowledge—is an act of preservation.
We also owe a debt to Marjory Stoneman Douglas, who defended the Everglades not just as an environmental cause, but as a moral one.
“The Everglades is a test. If we pass, we may get to keep the planet.”
This is the ethical foundation of the humanities. It’s about more than wetlands or novels or archives—it’s about vision. Memory. Meaning. And business leaders—especially those who have flourished in Florida—have the capacity to become champions of that vision.
Let me bring it closer to home.
Florida is the birthplace of poets like Campbell McGrath and Richard Blanco. In his address at President Barack Obama’s second inauguration, Blanco wrote:
“The ‘I have a dream’ we keep dreaming, or the impossible vocabulary of sorrow that won’t explain the empty desks of twenty children marked absent today and forever.”
What spreadsheet will teach us how to hold grief, or dream justice? What index fund return will show our children how to build meaning?
We are also the home of memory-keepers—archaeologists, folklorists, librarians, and teachers—who piece together the stories of Seminole resistance, African American achievement, immigrant perseverance, and everyday heroism. These are the quiet voices that make a people whole.
Yet today, we face a dangerous unraveling.
Federal and state support for the humanities is vanishing. Budgets are slashed. Grants are withheld. And organizations like Florida Humanities are working day and night to keep the lights on, while telling the stories that bind us together.
This is where I must make a direct appeal to the philanthropic conscience and civic duty of Tampa Bay’s business leaders.
I invite you to a greater responsibility—a responsibility to lead, give and imagine a society that thrives because of the humanities.
You are builders of industries. Now we ask you to become protectors of culture.
You have risen through innovation. Now we ask you to lead through preservation.
You are celebrated for your business acumen. We need you to become voices of moral clarity in your giving—champions not just of profit, but of purpose.
Why? Because the humanities cultivate critical thinking. They teach media literacy. They help communities confront history honestly and engage democracy fully. In short, they make citizens. Furthermore, they are economic engines in our state.
Florida’s arts and cultural industry has generated $5.8 billion of economic activity, including $2.9 billion by nonprofit arts and culture organizations. This economic activity supports 91,270 full-time jobs and generates $3.8 billion in resident household income.
James Baldwin warned us:
“People are trapped in history and history is trapped in them.”
The only way to free ourselves—and future generations—is to engage, invest, and lead with intention.
At Florida Humanities, our programs like Florida Talks, FORUM Magazine, Florida Stories, and Smithsonian exhibitions are doing that work. They aren’t passive—they activate empathy. They don’t just remember—they make meaning.
Since 1973, Florida Humanities has provided more than $20 million in support of statewide cultural resources and public programs. Most of our grants are $10,000 or less, yet they powerfully sustain smaller organizations with budgets under $500,000 – the lifeblood of local culture.
So, what can you do?
You can fund local historical societies. Underwrite exhibits in rural counties. Adopt a library in need. Sponsor a poetry reading. Endow a lecture series. Invite storytellers into your boardrooms and artists into your strategic planning. You can also donate to Florida Humanities today and support the work we do as Florida’s storytellers.
Social altruism begins when the powerful recognize their obligation to protect what cannot protect itself. And right now, culture—our shared story—is at risk of being silenced.
I urge you not to see this as charity, but as civic stewardship. Not as nostalgia, but as necessity.
When we protect the humanities, we safeguard the very conditions of democracy, of dialogue, of belonging. We preserve the spirit of Florida.
Let us rise to meet this moment.
Let us not simply be benefactors, but believers. Not just funders, but forces.
–Contributed by Dr. Nashid Madyun, executive director of Florida Humanities
