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Attorneys representing President Donald Trump and The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts have filed an appeal of a federal court ruling that ordered Trump’s name removed from the institution, according to The New York Times.
The notice of appeal was filed Thursday as a two-week deadline approached for removing the president’s name from the building and official Kennedy Center materials. The appeal also challenges a separate portion of the ruling that temporarily blocked the administration’s proposal to close the center for two years during a planned renovation project.
The Kennedy Center’s largely Trump-appointed board voted to pursue the appeal earlier today.
The appeal follows a recent ruling by Judge Christopher R. Cooper of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, who found that the Kennedy Center’s board lacked the authority to rename the institution. Cooper ruled that only Congress can change the name of the national cultural center, which was established in memory of President John F. Kennedy and formally dedicated in 1964.
The judge ordered the Kennedy Center to remove Trump’s name from both the building and its official materials within two weeks.
In response to the ruling, Kennedy Center staff were instructed to begin restoring references to the institution’s original name, according to an internal memo first reported by The New York Times. Employees were directed to update official forms, social media accounts, email signatures, voicemail greetings and signage. Staff were also instructed to revert references to either “The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts” or simply “Kennedy Center.”
The dispute stems from a December vote by the Kennedy Center’s board to add Trump’s name to the institution. The president’s name was subsequently added to the building’s façade and other official materials.
The appeal now places the future of the renaming effort before a higher court while the Kennedy Center continues complying with the district court’s order.
