3 weeks ago
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Relatives of the precocious President John F Kennedy slammed the centre’s board, saying the sanction cannot beryllium changed nether law.
Published On 20 Dec 2025
Donald Trump’s name has been added to the Kennedy Center successful Washington, DC, conscionable 1 time aft his hand-picked committee members controversially voted to rename the arts venue, the archetypal clip a nationalist instauration has been named aft a sitting US president.
Workmen added metallic lettering to the building’s exterior connected Friday that declared, “The Donald J Trump and the John F Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts.”
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“Today, we proudly unveil the updated exterior designation – honoring the enactment of President Donald J Trump and the enduring bequest of John F Kennedy,” the centre said connected societal media.
Family members of erstwhile President Kennedy, who was killed by an assassin’s slug successful 1963, arsenic good arsenic historians and Democratic lawmakers, person criticised the move, saying lone an enactment of Congress could change the sanction of the centre, which was designated arsenic a surviving memorial to Kennedy a twelvemonth aft his assassination.
“The Kennedy Center was named by law. To alteration the sanction would necessitate a revision of that 1964 law,” Ray Smock, a erstwhile House of Representatives historian, told the Associated Press (AP) quality agency. “The Kennedy Center committee is not a lawmaking entity. Congress makes laws,” Smock said.
A grin lights the look of President John F Kennedy arsenic helium is cheered during a code to a Democratic Party rally successful Milwaukee, US, successful 1962 [File: AP Photo]The AP reports that the instrumentality naming the centre explicitly prohibits the committee of trustees from making the centre into a memorial to anyone else, and from putting different person’s sanction connected the building’s exterior.
Kerry Kennedy, a niece of erstwhile President Kennedy, said successful a station connected societal media that she volition region Trump’s sanction herself erstwhile his word arsenic president ends.
“Three years and 1 period from today, I’m going to drawback a pickax and propulsion those letters disconnected that building, but I’m going to request assistance holding the ladder. Are you in?” she wrote connected X.
Naming a nationalist instauration aft a sitting president is unprecedented successful US history. Landmarks specified arsenic the Washington Monument, Lincoln Memorial and indeed, the Kennedy Center were each named aft the deaths of the renowned US leaders.
Kennedy’s grandnephew, erstwhile Congressman Joe Kennedy III, besides said the Kennedy Center, similar the Lincoln Memorial, was a “living memorial to a fallen president” and cannot beryllium renamed, “no substance what anyone says”.
Trump claimed connected Thursday that helium was “surprised” by the renaming of the Kennedy Center, adjacent though helium personally purged the centre’s erstwhile committee aft calling it “too woke”.
He has besides antecedently spoken astir having his sanction added to the centre and appointed himself president of the centre’s committee earlier this year.
Trump has sought to rein successful the Kennedy Center since the commencement of his 2nd word arsenic portion of an battle connected taste institutions that his medication has accused of being excessively left-wing.
English (US) ·