Recognizing the immense capacity of the popular arts to bring people together, inspire creativity and imagination, promote critical thinking, and instill the universal values of truth, justice, and equality.
About This Bill
Committee
Latest Action · July 21, 2025
Referred to the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform.
H.Res. 599 is a congressional resolution recognizing the cultural and economic importance of the popular arts—including comics, graphic novels, television, video games, and other creative media—and their power to unite people, inspire creativity, and promote critical thinking. The resolution highlights that nearly 5 million Americans work in arts and cultural production, which contributes over $1 trillion annually to the U.S. economy, and notes the global reach of these industries, from the $300 billion gaming sector to Comic-Con conventions that draw hundreds of thousands of attendees. The resolution emphasizes that popular arts, particularly comics and graphic novels, serve as important educational tools for literacy and have a rich historical lineage spanning from ancient cave paintings to modern superhero stories, citing examples like Art Spiegelman's Pulitzer Prize-winning "Maus" and Congressman John Lewis' acclaimed "March" trilogy. Rather than creating new programs or funding, this resolution simply expresses Congress's recognition of the arts' social and economic value and calls for promoting these creative forms to broader audiences while improving representation within them.
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