By Piyush M Padwale
The board members of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts have voted to rename it as the Trump-Kennedy Center, a move intended to recognize US President Donald Trump’s role in funding renovations and leading the institution.
Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt mentioned the change on social media, who claims that this goes a long way in attaining new levels of success and grandeur.
In February, Donald Trump was elected chair by a newly constituted board. Earlier this month, he jokingly hinted at the possibility of a name change during an event for the annual presentation of the Kennedy Center Honors.
This has further welcomed a lot of legal and political controversy, especially among the House Democratic leaders and board members who claim the move to be an overreach and a disgrace, saying this unilateral action from Trump undermines democratic norms and the institution’s bipartisan legacy.
Several members of the Kennedy family, including Maria Shriver and Joe Kennedy III, have also spoken against this move, condemning it as downright disrespectful, weird, and an affront to JFK’s legacy and the purpose of the centre, which was established as a sign of honor to the fallen president.
On a broader scale, it has also caused a lot of cultural backlash with several artists cancelling performances, consultants resigning, and critics saying that the center is now being turned into a partisan symbolic project rather than a neutral cultural institution.
The Kennedy Center was renamed by Congress after the assassination of John F. Kennedy in 1963, and has a federal law that mentions that after December 2, 1983, no additional memorials or plaques in the name of memorials shall be designated/installed in the public areas of the center.
Donald Trump had his first appearance at the center in June after his return to the White House, which was met with a mixed reception of cheers and boos as he and first lady Melania Trump entered the presidential box.