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Photos Reveal Kennedy Center Facade Without Trump’s Name, But Tarp and Scaffolding Remain
The Kennedy Center has removed former President Donald Trump’s name from its exterior, complying with a recent court order. However, the facade remains partially obscured by tarps and scaffolding, according to new photos.
The signage featuring Trump’s name was taken down on June 13, following a legal mandate requiring all physical and digital references to the president be eliminated from the center. Despite the removal, the area has been covered for over a week, leaving the letters’ absence visible only beneath the ongoing concealment.
A team of 14 workers erected scaffolding on June 12 to meet the court’s deadline, though the project extended past the cutoff time, with the final letters coming down around 3 a.m. that Saturday. The Kennedy Center later confirmed the removal in court documents but opted to keep the maintenance structures in place.
Security personnel have maintained barriers for more than a week, blocking public access and views of the facade. Recent images show two rows of empty square panels where Trump’s name once appeared.
Kennedy Center spokesperson Roma Daravi explained the tarps and scaffolding are necessary as crews address repairs to the marble and soffit panels.
The legal push for the removal came from Rep. Joyce Beatty (D-Ohio), an ex officio board member, whose lawsuit prompted the court ruling.
Beatty’s attorneys accused Trump and his supporters on the board of “willfully sabotaging” the center’s iconic facade to “assuage… vanity or massage broken egos.” They further claimed trustees are “actively undermining” efforts to restore the center’s name in what they called a “petty act of defiance.”
As the Kennedy Center works through maintenance and restoration, the removal of Trump’s name marks a significant change to the institution’s appearance and a notable outcome of the recent legal battle.