PHL Watchdog

Trump’s Planned Sculpture Garden Strikes A Discordant Note

President Trump and his sycophants have eliminated diversity, equity and inclusion programs, gutted the Voting Rights Act, undermined public education, attacked Black studies, and erased Black history at National Park Service sites.

Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth removed the portrait of Daniel “Chappie” James Jr., the nation’s first Black four-star general, from the Air Force Art Gallery. UFC fighter Josh Hokit made a racist comment about Michelle Obama on the White House lawn.

For the descendants of Africans who were brought here in the bowels of slave ships, our cardinal sin is in our skin.

Black historical figures, who fought for everything that Trump is dismantling, are included in his proposed “National Garden of American Heroes.” Trump’s garden would feature statues of notable Americans, including Muhummad Ali, Crispus Attucks, Frederick Douglass, Medgar Evers, Martin Luther King Jr., Thurgood Marshall, Rosa Parks, Jackie Robinson, Ida B. Wells-Barnett and Phillis Wheatley.

Earlier this month, a coalition of advocacy, conservation and historical preservation organizations, including the National Parks Conservation Association, DC Preservation League and the Committee of 100 on the Federal City, filed a lawsuit to halt the project. The Washington Post reported:

A coalition of Washington-area preservation and cultural heritage organizations on Monday sued the Trump administration over President Donald Trump’s plan to remake national parkland with a massive statuary garden.

The groups said that Trump’s planned “National Garden of American Heroes” — which the president has said would feature life-size statues of roughly 250 Americans and be built in West Potomac Park — must be halted until Congress authorizes the project.

[…]

“Congress put clear laws in place to safeguard the National Mall from new construction and to ensure the public has a meaningful voice in decisions about landscapes that belong to them, as space open to all,” Tiernan Sittenfeld, president and CEO for the National Parks Conservation Association, said in a statement.

The sculpture park would also feature nine Black musicians.

Aretha Franklin sang at Barack Obama’s first inauguration.

There “ain’t no way” Aretha would want to be included in Trump’s vanity project. The Queen of Soul “would rather drink muddy water, sleep out in a hollow log.”

Like Aretha, Ray Charles supported the Civil Rights Movement. In a tribute to Brother Ray at the White House, then-President Barack Obama said:

Now, in those days, Black musicians were expected to play in the Jim Crow South. But in 1961 – the year I was born – Ray refused to play for a segregated audience in Augusta, Georgia. He was sued for breach of contract, but he continued boycotting segregated venues and became an active supporter of the Civil Rights Movement.

The Genuis of Soul didn’t suffer fools. Ray Charles would tell Trump to “hit the road, Jack.”

Happy Birthday, Mr. President

With the clock ticking, attorneys for the “Trump Kennedy Center” filed a last-ditch motion to halt implementation of U.S. District Judge Christopher R. Cooper’s order to remove President Trump’s name from the building’s façade by June 12, 2026.

The motion was denied.

A little over four hours later, Justice Department lawyers filed an emergency motion for a stay pending appeal to the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals. They asked the. Court “to rule on that request no later than 7 PM.”

In a per curiam order issued at 7:09 p.m., the Court denied the Defendants’ motion for an immediate administrative stay.

Amid chants of “Take It Down,” the construction crew built the scaffolding. The snail’s pace seemed to be by design. One worker was on the phone at midnight.

Was Charles Matthew Floca on the other end of the line? At 11:56 p.m., the Defendants filed a motion for a one-day extension of time to file a declaration certifying compliance.

The defendants were given a 12-hour extension. The workers began removing Trump’s name from the John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts on June 13, 2026 around 3:00 a.m.

The defendants confirmed they removed signage “that purports to rename the Kennedy Center after President Trump” in the notice of compliance filed around 11:00 a.m.

It is said that history repeats itself. The first time as tragedy, the second as farce. The Kennedy Center is across from the Watergate complex which is forever associated with President Nixon’s coverup of a “third-rate burglary attempt.”

A third-rate president covered up the removal of his name from the façade of the Kennedy Center behind a tarp.

Donald L. Trump’s name was removed one day before his 80th birthday. Happy birthday, Mr. President.

Kennedy Center Name Change

William Shakespeare asked, “What’s in a name?” If the name is Donald Trump, it is synonymous with chaos, cronyism, crooks, corruption, coverups and cancellations.

In the wake of U.S. District Judge Christopher R. Cooper’s order, the Kennedy Center’s general counsel directed staff to “immediately change email signatures, letterhead, and other documents to reflect the name as “The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts,” or “Kennedy Center.” The changes must be completed by June 12, 2026.

The illegal name change prompted jazz drummer and vibraphonist Chuck Redd to cancel his Christmas Eve concert. Trump’s crony filed a retaliatory lawsuit. In a letter to Redd, then-Kennedy Center President Richard Grenell wrote this is “your official notice that we will seek $1 million in damages from you for this political stunt.”

On June 5, 2026, the case was dismissed. The Washington Post reported:

A judge on Friday threw out the Kennedy Center’s breach-of-contract lawsuit against a jazz musician who withdrew from a performance after the venue’s board voted to rename the building after President Donald Trump.

D.C. Superior Court Judge Tanya Jones Bosier said center officials failed to show they had made a legally binding agreement with Chuck Redd to perform at the venue’s annual Christmas Eve concert, as he had in years past. Redd told the center he chose to bow out because of “the defiant and illegal name change happening to the Kennedy Center.”

Judge Jones Bosier said the lawsuit violated D.C.’s anti-SLAPP law (Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation Act) which is designed to protect people from meritless lawsuits filed by powerful entities to intimidate and silence critics.

Redd’s lawyer, Lisa J. Banks, said in a statement:

The Center sued Mr. Redd because he publicly and rightly objected to adding Donald Trump’s name to the Kennedy Center, a living memorial to former President John F. Kennedy. The lawsuit against Mr. Redd was political retribution, pure and simple, by the Trump Kennedy Center, and the Court correctly saw it as such in dismissing the case with prejudice.

Trump slapped his name on the living memorial to John F. Kennedy. Grennell was slapped down by the court. The “Trump-Kennedy Center” was ordered to pay Redd’s attorneys’ fees and costs.

Let the music play.

Judge Orders Trump’s Name Removed from Kennedy Center

In a blow to President’s Trump’s fragile ego, a federal judge ordered his name removed from the John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts. U.S. District Judge Christopher R. Cooper ruled that the Kennedy Center was unlawfully renamed. Judge Cooper ordered Trump’s name removed from the front portico of the building, website, physical or digital signage, and official materials within 14 days of the date of his order:

The Court has concluded that the Board overstepped its statutory bounds by unilaterally renaming the Kennedy Center after President Trump… As a result, the Kennedy Center Board’s decision to rename the Center, along with its decision to affix President Trump’s name to the building’s façade, violate Congress’s unequivocal mandate. As stated at the outset, Congress gave the Kennedy Center its name, and only Congress can change it.

The lawsuit was brought by Rep. Joyce Beatty, an ex officio member of the board of trustees. In a press release, Rep. Beatty said:

Today’s ruling rightly affirms that this administration’s efforts to rename and close the Center have no basis in law. The Kennedy Center is an institution that belongs to the American people, not to Donald Trump. He has desecrated this sacred memorial for his own vanity. I am proud to have fought for the rule of law and to protect this sacred institution.

Congresswoman Beatty took a victory lap on X/Twitter.

In a Truth Social post, President Trump had an epic meltdown in which he threw in the towel. Trump said he has “instructed the Department of Commerce to make all necessary arrangements with Congress to allow a full and complete transfer of this Institution, giving them the responsibility for its Operation, Maintenance, and Management.”

Trump followed up his meltdown with an epic whine:

[Judge Cooper]… decided, unprecedentedly, to not allow a desperately needed Building Renovation to go forward. On top of that, he said, “Rip his name off the Building, he’s got 20 days to do so,” even though a large Board of some of the most distinguished people in the Country voted unanimously to put the name up.

Whatever, dude.

Judge Cooper’s order and Trump’s capitulation happened on the 109th anniversary of John Fitzgerald Kennedy’s birth. Happy heavenly birthday, JFK.

The Black Origin of Memorial Day

Originally called Decoration Day, Congress established Memorial Day as the last Monday in May in 1968. The undertold history of Memorial Day dates back to the Civil War.

First observed on May 1, 1865 in Charleston, South Carolina , thousands of African Americans, including formerly enslaved, 54th Massachusetts Infantry Regiment, and 34th and 104th United States Colored Troops, were led by children as they gathered to honor 257 Union soldiers who were buried in a mass grave on Washington Race Course which was used as a Confederate prison camp.

The ancestors exhumed the mass grave, reburied the bodies and decorated their graves with fresh flowers; hence, Decoration Day.

Remembering Ona Judge

Ona “Oney” Judge (c. 1773-1848) was an enslaved Black woman held in bondage by George Washington and Martha Washington at Mount Vernon and the President’s House in Philadelphia. As Martha Washington’s personal servant, Ona was responsible for dressing and bathing her, managing her wardrobe, mending clothing, and cleaning personal rooms.

Ona “absconded” from the President’s House on May 21, 1796.

Ona was never caught.

Philadelphia City Council recently passed a resolution designating May 21 annually as “Ona Judge Day.”

City Council also recognized Michael Coard and Avenging The Ancestors Coalition (ATAC) for their “sustained advocacy to ensure the truth about slavery at the President’s House is told, preserved, and publicly recognized.”

Join ATAC on Thursday, May 21, 2026 at 3:30 pm for their 23rd annual Ona “Oney” Judge celebration at the President’s House Site.

For more information, visit Avenging The Ancestors Coalition.

Preservation Month 2026

May is Preservation Month, an annual celebration dedicated to promoting the importance of preserving historic places and cultural heritage. This year’s theme, “all people are created equal,” focuses on places that tell the full American story.

As the nation marks 250 years since the Declaration of Independence, preservation demands urgency, honesty, and accountability. The words “all people are created equal” did not include Black people. The built environment carries the evidence of that contradiction.

At its core, historic preservation is about storytelling. At my upcoming walking tour, Hercules Posey’s Philadelphia, we will visit historic landmarks to tell the story of President George Washington’s enslaved chief cook. Places like Independence Hall, Congress Hall, Old City Hall and Christ Church.

We will stop at sites that hold Hercules’ story. Sites such as Ricketts Circus and the High Street Market. We will also stroll down the 100 block of Black Horse Alley which was added to the Philadelphia Register of Historic Places’ Historic Street Paving Thematic District in 1998. Some of the granite blocks date back to Hercules’ time in Philadelphia.

Walking in Hercules Posey’s Footsteps will be held on Saturday, May 16, 2026, from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. The event is free but reservations are required. To reserve a spot, go here.

George Washington and Slavery

In arguable violation of U.S. District Judge Cynthia M. Rufe’s order, the National Park Service, without notice or collaboration with the City of Philadelphia and Avenging The Ancestors Coalition (ATAC), uploaded digital renderings to the President’s House Site webpage. The alternative interpretive panels erase the truth about George Washington and slavery.

In a Philadelphia Inquirer op-ed, Michael Coard, founder of ATAC, wrote:

These were not restorations. They were revisions — an attempt to soften and sanitize George Washington’s deep involvement in slavery, recasting a man who enslaved African men, women, and children from the age of 11 until his death as someone merely “uncomfortable” with the institution. They even suggest the enslaved in Philadelphia experienced a “modicum of autonomy.”

Let’s be clear: There is no autonomy in enslavement.

If Washington felt “discomfort,” imagine the lived reality of the 316 African descendants he held in bondage. If NPS believes “autonomy” applies to human beings in chains, then it fundamentally misunderstands the brutality of slavery.

From his first breath at Pope’s Creek to his last breath at Mount Vernon, Washington was surrounded by enslaved people. Throughout his life, he was involved with the institution of slavery. While his views on slavery changed over time, Washington’s private musings are trumped by his public actions.

Fact is, Washington did not emancipate an enslaved person during his lifetime.

Washington “owned” outright 123 Black people. His personal servant, William “Billy” Lee, was the only one given “immediate freedom” upon Washington’s death. The remaining 122 enslaved people were to be freed upon the death of Martha Washington.

Washington owned, bought, sold, rented and bargained for Black people. He pursued those who dared to seek their freedom. From 1771 to his death in 1799, he pursued freedom seekers including Harry, Hercules Posey and Ona Judge.

I am nominating President Washington’s enslaved chief cook, Hercules Posey, for a Pennsylvania historical marker. I will submit the nomination on May 15, 2026, the 214th anniversary of his death.

On Saturday, May 16, 2026, I will lead a walking tour of people, places and events in Hercules Posey’s Philadelphia. To join us, send your name and email address to phlwatchdog@gmail.com.

April is Jazz Appreciation Month, a nationwide celebration to recognize jazz as a uniquely American art form rooted in Black history and cultural expression. Established in 2001 by the National Museum of American History, people of all ages are encouraged to engage with jazz through education and performance.

Jazz at Lincoln Center recently launched JazzCall for Freedom, a “coordinated civic response to a moment of deep division in our country.” The bandstand is turned into “a public square for civic expression and renewal.”

JazzCall for Freedom is a call to action against “a rising movement towards authoritarianism.” The social media campaign uses jazz to engage with ideas about democracy and freedom.

Jazz at Lincoln Center Managing and Artistic Director Wynton Marsalis notes that “jazz has always been a civic minded music and it gives us a chance to be a part of that legacy.” That legacy dates back to Billie Holiday whose 1939 recording of “Strange Fruit” is the first protest song of the modern Civil Rights Movement.

Each Friday, Jazz at Lincoln Center will share a video featuring an artist performing a chorus of a song embodying the spirit of democracy. This week’s song is Stevie Wonder’s “Visions” performed by Cécile McLorin Salvant and Sullivan Fortner.

For information on how you can add your voice to this national “call and response,” visit jazz.org/jazzcall.

Erasing History from National Parks

This weekend, I led a teach-in at the President’s House Site organized by the Association of Philadelphia Tour Guides.

There was a steady stream of visitors to the site. Most were aware that the National Park Service removed the interpretive signs and were ordered to reinstall them. However, they were surprised the President’s House Site has not been restored to its physical status as of January 21, 2026 as ordered by U.S. District Judge Cynthia M. Rufe.

The Department of the Interior appealed Judge Rufe’s order to the Third Circuit Court of Appeals. Full restoration of the site was paused by Judge Thomas M. Hardiman. As the lawsuit, City of Philadelphia v. Doug Burgum, Secretary of the Interior, et al., moves through the federal courts, the President’s House Site will remain partially restored.

On the two-month anniversary of the removal of the interpretive panels, CBS Sunday Morning aired a report, “Signs of the times: Removing stories of America’s past from our national parks.”

Jim Axelrod interviewed Alan Spears, Senior Director for Cultural Resources at the National Parks Conservation Association.

Spears has a clear message for those who cannot handle the truth about the “nuanced nature of our history”:

If you are thinking about visiting a national park, if you don’t want to tackle any of these large issues that make you think critically about race and slavery, and gender and other things like that, there are hundreds of thousands of places in the United States where you can go. Knock yourself out at Six Flags but don’t ruin it for the rest of us who have come to rely on national parks as places for that learning.

We want to maintain their ability, unimpaired, to be able to talk about the full scope of our history – wonder, warts and all.

President Trump wants to erase the fact-based history told at the President’s House Site. Removal of the interpretive panels is a “sign o’ the times.”