'Kennedy Center' Finally Removes Trump’s Name... Demolition Broadcast Live

Also Removed from Website and Signage

The Kennedy Center in Washington DC has removed President Donald Trump's name from its building.

On the 13th (local time) in Washington DC, USA, scaffolding (construction platform) has been installed near the sign of the "Donald J. Trump and John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts." On the 12th, a federal judge dismissed the request by the Kennedy Center board and the U.S. Department of Justice to halt the removal of President Donald Trump's name. Photo by AFP Yonhap News Agency

On the 13th (local time), international media outlets such as The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported that the Kennedy Center had taken down President Trump's name from the exterior of the building and also deleted the designation from its website. Matt Floca, Chief Operating Officer (COO) of the Kennedy Center, stated in documents submitted to the federal court that "all physical signage that appeared to rename the Kennedy Center after President Trump has been removed from the building and the premises."

Previously, the Kennedy Center board, chaired by President Trump, decided last year to add President Trump's name in front of former President John F. Kennedy's, renaming it the "Trump-Kennedy Center." However, Democratic Representative Joyce Beatty filed a lawsuit in opposition to this move. The Kennedy Center board argued that the new name "Trump-Kennedy Center" was merely a nickname, but Christopher Cooper, a judge at the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, ruled that "the authority to change the name of the Kennedy Center rests solely with Congress" and ordered the removal of President Trump's name.

The Kennedy Center attempted to halt the enforcement of the ruling until the last minute by appealing, arguing that "if we remove the sign now and have to reinstall it should we win the appeal, it would result in unnecessary time and cost." However, the court denied this request. Ultimately, the Kennedy Center hired workers to remove the letters from the building’s exterior overnight. Hundreds of citizens gathered at the site to watch the removal, with some chanting "Remove it," and one citizen holding a sign reading "You are not JFK (John F. Kennedy)." The removal process was also broadcast live online.

On the 13th (local time), construction workers were removing President Donald Trump's name from the exterior wall of a building at the Kennedy Center in Washington DC, USA, while a citizen held a sign reading "You are not President Kennedy." Photo by AFP Yonhap News

The Washington Post (WP) assessed that this issue goes beyond the simple removal of President Trump's name from the Kennedy Center, calling it "a symbolic clash over the identity of American cultural institutions and the influence of political power." The report also predicted that legal and political controversy over the future of the Kennedy Center will continue for the time being.

Representative Beatty stated, "Today's victory is the starting point for returning the Kennedy Center to the American people," adding, "It is a day when the rule of law has prevailed." President Trump, in response to the court's removal order, criticized, "Judge Cooper and the radical left would rather see the Center fail than transform it into a place everyone can be proud of."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.