The Ann Arbor Film Festival announced today that it has settled a federal lawsuit, filed by the ACLU on its behalf, against the State of Michigan. In exchange for the state legislature repealing unconstitutional restrictions on arts funding, the AAFF and ACLU agreed to voluntarily dismiss the lawsuit.

The new guidelines for arts funding, resulting from the AAFF’s lawsuit, mirror the National Endowment for the Arts guidelines, which have been upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court. These flexible guidelines state that “Artistic excellence and artistic merit are the criteria by which applications will be judged, taking into consideration general standards of decency and respect for the diverse beliefs and values of the people of this state.”

"This decision isn't only a victory for artistic freedom of expression, but a reminder to stand up and ensure that our government is held accountable for the power they wield,” said Christen McArdle, AAFF Executive Director. “We are pleased that arbitrary guidelines will no longer be used to deny artists their creative rights.”

Documentary filmmaker Ken Burns, one of the AAFF’s prominent supporters, shared his thoughts about the lawsuit, “I am thrilled by this decision--it protects us all, even those who might be inclined to limit this great Festival's free expression."

To recover financially, the Ann Arbor Film Festival recently launched its Endangered fundraising campaign, a creative and participatory online call to action for people worldwide to contribute support. The campaign seeks to offset the financial hardship created by this prolonged funding controversy by raising $75,000 by the end of January 2008. Supporters of the Endangered campaign have already contributed more than ½ the monies needed. The campaign has generated public awareness both locally and nationally about this critical issue.

To read more about the history of the AAFF's censorship controversy, visit:
http://www.aafilmfest.org/about/censorship/

To read the Agreement to Dismiss, visit:
http://www.aclumich.org/pdf/aaffdismissal.pdf

To read the complaint, visit:
http://www.aclumich.org/pdf/aaffcomplaint.pdf

Labels: censorship controversy, endangered campaign