Hundreds of arts supporters marched to the state Capitol today in protest of proposed budget cuts to the Georgia council for the Arts.

Mishele Lesser is a local artist and art educator. She fears these cuts will destroy the already limited arts programming that are offered to students across the state.

"The arts are an essential form of human rights because they are a part of our freedom of expression," said Lesser. "By eliminating programming on this level we are eliminating these different voices, from all age groups to all political spectrums for that matter."

The $17.8 billion budget passed the state house last week. It eliminated the nearly 900,000 dollar budget that currently funds the Georgia Arts Council. If the budget cuts pass the Senate, Georgia would become the only state in the U.S. without an arts agency.

Tags: lawmakers, budget, gold dome, Georgia Council for the Arts, Protest