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The renowned Kennedy Center in Washington, one of the main cultural symbols of the United States, is facing a wave of cancellations following the decision of its board of directors to add the name of President Donald Trump to that of the institution.
In mid-December, the center officially changed its name to The Donald J. Trump and The John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts.
The measure was approved by a board mostly appointed by Trump. This has generated controversy and backlash among artists and public figures.
A few days before the New Year celebrations, the jazz group The Cookers announced the cancellation of their performance, stating that their music aims to "bring people together, not divide them."
The drummer Billy Hart acknowledged to the U.S. press that the name change "clearly" influenced the decision.
The New York dance company Doug Varone and Dancers and singer-songwriter Kristy Lee also withdrew, denouncing the political use of an institution created in memory of President John F. Kennedy.
"I cannot perform on a stage that is used for someone else's ego," Lee wrote on social media.
The president of the center, Richard Grenell, dismissed the criticism and referred to the cancellations as "a form of hysteria," accusing the artists of "costly intolerance" and hinting at possible lawsuits for breach of contract.
The change has also raised legal questions, as the Kennedy Center was designated by an act of Congress in 1964 as a national monument in honor of Kennedy.
Democratic Congresswoman Joyce Beatty sued Trump for what she described as an “act typical of authoritarian regimes.”
Condemnation also came from the Kennedy family. Joe Kennedy III warned that "you cannot rename a memorial monument, just as you cannot change the name of the Lincoln Memorial."
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