Workers began removing the name of the President of the United States, Donald Trump, from an external wall of the Kennedy Center in the early hours of Saturday (13), according to images recorded by a team from CNN.
The measure comes after the historic performing arts center failed to meet the deadline set by a federal judge to remove Trump’s name from the building and requested more time to carry out the determination.
Justice Department lawyers representing the center said Friday night that although work was ongoing, storms in the Washington region caused delays. According to them, the teams expected to complete the removal of Trump’s name “in the early hours” of this Saturday.
District judge Casey Cooper had set a deadline of 11:59 pm on Friday (12) for the center to prove compliance with the court order. To date, the judge has not responded to the institution’s request for more time.
Crews began erecting scaffolding under the building’s exterior signage on Friday. Shortly before 2am on Saturday, workers began covering the structure with tarps, practically blocking all view of the work’s progress, while people gathered below shouted “Shame!”.
Shortly after 3 a.m., crews apparently began removing the letters, according to images recorded through a small opening in the scaffolding roof.
Earlier on Friday, an appeals court upheld an order that the Kennedy Center remove the president’s name from the building by the end of the day, rejecting a last-minute attempt by the institution to temporarily halt the decision while the legal process continues.
The court did not explain the reasons for the decision in a brief unsigned order. The panel was made up of judges Gregory Katsas, nominated by Trump, Patricia Millett, nominated by former President Barack Obama, and Robert Wilkins, also nominated by Obama.
The judges requested that new written arguments be presented later this month on the center’s request to suspend the first instance decision, which requires the removal of Trump’s name from the building, website, promotional materials and other spaces. However, while the legal dispute continues, the center must, for now, .
In recent days, the institution had already reversed the change in some locations, but kept the letters that spelled out “The Donald J. Trump and” on the facade, while trying to avoid complying with Cooper’s order.
In a 22-page brief filed with the appeals court, Justice Department lawyers repeated several arguments they had already made to the judge, including that restoring the center’s original name now could cause public confusion if they later prevail.
They also argued that compliance with the decision could compromise private donations to the institution. The department cited internal rules that funds must be returned to donors if Trump’s name is removed from records, marketing materials, branding, storefronts or any other location associated with the center.
“All of this money, hundreds of millions of dollars, must be immediately returned or it will no longer be received by the center,” the department told the court.
Protesters demand removal of name
On Friday afternoon, while the scaffolding was partially erected, work was interrupted due to the arrival of strong storms in the region and the submission of a request to suspend the decision to the appeals court.
A small group of protesters followed the movement throughout the day, shouting slogans such as “Get it out” and, at one point, calling the workers “heroes”.
Democratic Representative Joyce Beatty of Ohio, who is leading the legal challenge, was on site to monitor the work and pose for photos under the scaffolding.
“We know we are on the right side of justice and the law,” Beatty said, to applause from protesters. “No matter what happens, we will continue to fight for the Kennedy family.”
“They will face us at every step. There will be a legal battle at every step,” he added.
The signage with Trump’s name was installed in December, after the board of directors approved the tribute to the president, which promoted broad changes in the institution’s direction and programming. The change generated criticism from the Kennedy family and led to legal action.
At a meeting on Thursday, the board also approved a resolution praising Trump’s “profound dedication” to the arts center and creating the “Trump Kennedy Center Fund.” According to a Kennedy Center official interviewed by CNNthe fund aims to raise additional private resources to finance the institution.
The amounts raised would be added to the US$ 257 million allocated by Congress through the budget law known as “One Big Beautiful Bill”.
It is unclear whether the president will make any personal contributions to the fund that bears his name.
