All That Philly Jazz – PHL Watchdog

Winter of Discontent at Kennedy Center

Donald Trump’s first year back in the White House was an annus horribilis. As the curtain was falling on 2025, President Trump’s handpicked Board of Trustees slapped his name on the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. The Trump-stacked board changed the bylaws to allow only his sycophants to vote on the name change. Trump’s name on the building desecrates the living memorial to the 35th President of the United States.

By law, “no additional memorials or plaques in the nature of memorials shall be designated or installed in the public areas of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.” The illegal renaming prompted jazz drummer and vibraphonist Chuck Redd to cancel his Christmas Eve concert.

In a letter to Redd, 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.”

Redd should call Grenell’s bluff. He would not have to worry about legal fees. Requests for donations to his legal defense fund would break the internet. It’s laughable to think the Kennedy Center would seek $1 million in damages for the cancellation of a free concert. There were no ticket sales; there were reservations. Through the discovery process, Redd would gain access to Board minutes and financial records.

Courage is contagious. Fall of Freedom is giving way to Winter of Discontent at the Kennedy Center. Shortly after Trump installed himself as chairman, “Hamilton” canceled its 2026 run at the storied art and culture institution.

The Cookers cancelled their New Year’s Eve concerts. The band’s drummer, Billy Hart, told the New York Times “the center’s name change had ‘evidently’ played a role” in the cancellation.

In canceling their gigs, Redd, the Cookers and the cast of “Hamilton” are following in the footsteps of the legendary citizen artists featured in the Kennedy Center’s immersive exhibit, “Art and Ideals.”

At the 1964 Berlin Jazz Festival, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. observed that jazz musicians were the vanguard of the Civil Rights Movement. In a statement posted on their website, the Cookers said:

Jazz was born from struggle and from a relentless insistence on freedom: freedom of thought, of expression, and of the full human voice. Some of us have been making this music for many decades, and that history still shapes us. We are not turning away from our audience, and do want to make sure that when we do return to the bandstand, the room is able to celebrate the full presence of the music and everyone in it.

NEA Jazz Master Billy Taylor was artistic director at the Kennedy Center from 1994 until his death in 2010. Dr. Taylor’s composition, “I Wish I Knew How It Would Feel to Be Free,” was an unofficial anthem of the Civil Rights Movement.

Redd’s canceled concert was to be held on the Millennium Stage. The Billy Taylor Trio inaugurated the Millennium Stage on March 1, 1997.

As long as Trump’s name is on the wall, jazz musicians should not set foot in the building. The only jazz should be live from the archives, Billy Taylor’s Jazz at the Kennedy Center (here and here).

UPDATE: Jazz trumpeter and violinist Wayne Tucker canceled his January 22, 2026 concert which was scheduled for the Millennium Stage.

When you click on the event link, this pops up.

Another one bites the dust.

Remembering Moses Williams (1776-1830)

Master silhouette artist Moses Wlliams passed away on December 13, 1830. Born into slavery in August 1776, Moses lived in the shadow of his enslaver, Charles Willson Peale. Moses grew up in the same household with Peale’s children, but he was denied the opportunity to learn the fine art of painting that was afforded his enslaver’s children.

Moses made a way out of no way. He excelled as a silhouette artist and earned a place in history. Moses’ Pennsylvania historical marker will be dedicated in 2026, the 250th anniversary of his birth.

Moses was interred at Northwest Burial Ground on December 20, 1830. Sometime between 1853 and 1868, the burial ground was sold, the bodies disinterred, and a church constructed on the site. Some of the remains were removed to Section 203 at Mount Moriah Cemetery in 1868 under a monument that reads: “Sacred to the memory of the dead whose remains were removed from the 16th and Coates St. Cemetery of St. Georges M. E. Church Philadelphia to this place in the year 1868.”

Mount Moriah has no record that Moses’ remains were among those reinterred in Section 203. In the absence of a final resting place, All That Philly Jazz Director Faye Anderson plastered the only known image of Moses in Freeman Alley, a graffitied place of remembrance in New York City.

Pasting over others’ stickers is part of the culture of Freeman Alley.

When Moses Williams’ historical marker is unveiled in 2026, he will have a permanent place in public memory.

The dedication ceremony is open to the public. If you are interested in attending, send your name and email address to phillyjazzapp@gmail.com.

Fall of Freedom Update

A few days before Fall of Freedom walking tour of Billie Holiday’s Philadelphia, the Philadelphia Inquirer published All That Philly Jazz Director Faye Anderson’s opinion piece in which she wrote:

No artist has met the moment with more courage than Lady Day, whose 1939 recording of “Strange Fruit” was named song of the century by Time magazine in 1999, and was added to the National Recording Registry in 2002.

“Strange Fruit” is a timeless and empowering act of creative resistance

While Holiday is sui generis, jazz musicians were the vanguard of the civil rights movement.

At so-called black and tan clubs like the Down Beat and the Blue Note, Black and white people intermingled on an equal basis for the first time.

Jazz clubs were constantly harassed by Philadelphia police led by vice squad Capt. Clarence Ferguson and his protégé, Inspector Frank Rizzo. The nightspots became battlegrounds in the struggle for racial justice. Jazz musicians’ unbowed demeanor fashioned a new racial identity

[…]

Courage is contagious. When we gather on South Broad, we are the resistance.

In collaboration with Scribe Video Center, the walking tour began at the Academy of Music where Billie had several engagements, including on May 6, 1946.

We stopped at the former location of the Radnor Hotel, a Green Book site, where Billie and her husband-manager, Louis McKay, were arrested on February 23, 1956. The raid was led by Captain Clarence Ferguson of the Philadelphia Police vice squad. The arrest is depicted in the biopic United States vs. Billie Holiday.

The penultimate stop was the site of Emerson’s Tavern, the jazz club where Billie last performed in Philadelphia. Emerson’s is the setting for the Broadway play, “Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar and Grill.”

The walk and talk ended at the former Attucks Hotel where on May 15, 1947, Billie’s room was raided while she was performing at the Earle Theater. Billie got a heads-up and fled to New York City where three days later she was arrested. She was subsequently convicted of narcotics possession and sentenced to one year and one day. Billie served her time at Alderson Federal Prison Camp in West Virginia.

The following Monday, Faye plastered the sticker that was given to participants all over Freeman Alley, a graffitied place of remembrance on the Lower East Side. Freedman Alley is located about a mile from Café Society, the Greenwich Village jazz club where Billie first sang “Strange Fruit.”

In the participant feedback survey, Faye expressed her hope that Fall of Freedom would lead to Winter of Our Discontent and Freedom Summer.

To stay in the loop, send your name and email address to phillyjazzapp@gmail.com.

Billie Holiday’s Philadelphia Walking Tour

Authoritarian regimes throughout history have targeted artists and cultural institutions. Early in his administration, President Trump issued an executive order that targeted the Smithsonian Institution.

Trump has taken over federal arts agencies and installed himself as chairman of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. He threatens to withhold federal funding from organizations that do not bend the knee.

Nina Simone said an artist’s duty is to reflect the times and the situations in which they find themselves.

Today, we find ourselves in a situation in which Trump wants to control the narrative.

Fall of Freedom issued an urgent call to artists, creators and cultural workers to stand united against the assault on our constitutional rights and authoritarian control. Fall of Freedom is a celebration of art, courage, and free expression.

No artist reflected the times more courageously than Billie Holiday whose recording of “Strange Fruit” was named Song of the Century by Time magazine in 1999 and included in the National Recording Registry in 2002.

Join All That Philly Jazz and Scribe Video Center on November 22, 2025 for this nationwide wave of creative resistance.

The walking tour will be guided by All That Philly Jazz Director Faye Anderson whose advocacy led to Billie’s induction into the Philadelphia Walk of Fame. We will visit the venues where Billie sang, the hotels where she stayed, and the site of the jazz club immortalized in the Tony Award®-winning “Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar and Grill.”

Along the way, we will stop at places connected to Nina Simone and Paul Robeson, artists who, like Billie, used their voices to speak truth to power.

The event is free and open to all, but registration is required. To reserve your spot, scan the QR code or go here.

Art matters. Courage is contagious. We are the resistance.

Collective Resistance to Censorship

Since his return to the White House, President Trump has punished individuals and institutions that refuse to bend the knee. In a guest essay published in the New York Times, Henry J. Farrell, a professor of democracy and international affairs at Johns Hopkins University, argues that collective action is the best defense against authoritarianism:

President Trump is trying to seize power that he is not entitled to under the law or the Constitution.

But Mr. Trump will fail in remaking American politics if people and institutions coordinate against him, which is why his administration is targeting businesses, nonprofits and the rest of civil society, proposing corrupting bargains to those who acquiesce and punishing holdouts to terrify the rest into submission.

This is one part of Mr. Trump’s bigger agenda to remake American politics so that everyone wants to be his friend and no one dares to be his enemy.

[…]

Those who oppose authoritarianism have to play a different game, creating solidarity among an unwieldy coalition, which knows that if everyone holds together, they will surely succeed.

Coordinated resistance stopped the National Park Service from removing interpretive signs at the President’s House for now.

In a recent editorial, the Philadelphia Inquirer acknowledged the impact of vigilance and collective courage:

Kudos to everyone who pushed back against Donald Trump’s attempt to whitewash the history of slavery at the President’s House site near the Liberty Bell.

Trump’s ridiculous executive order instructed the National Park Service to remove or cover up displays on federal sites that “inappropriately disparage Americans past or living.”

The arbitrary Sept. 17 deadline to remove the material has passed. For now, the President’s House exhibits remain untouched. But vigilance is still required, given Trump’s erratic policy approach and alarming cognitive state.

I am name-checked in the editorial. All That Philly Jazz is one of 255 signatories to an open statement pushing back against Trump’s attacks on arts and cultural institutions.

Mobilized by the National Coalition Against Censorship and the Vera List Center for Art and Politics, we are standing together to resist censorship:

Arts and culture bring people together. They spark joy, foster belonging, enrich communities, and help us imagine new possibilities. Arts and culture also open space for complexity—for grappling with different perspectives, for hearing what we might rather ignore, and for facing what makes us uncomfortable. Cultural organizations, including art, culture, history, and science museums, as well as libraries, theaters, and dance and performance spaces, make these encounters possible. They are key to the functioning of a democracy, as they promote freedom of expression, encourage critical thinking, and create important opportunities for public discussion and dissent.

[…]

As contributors to the sphere of art and culture, and as representatives of US art and cultural institutions that create space for art, ideas, innovation, and public engagement, we stand firm in the shared values that make for a robust arts and culture landscape: free expression, active debate, responsibility, and care.

Add your voice to the resistance at collective-courage.com.

President Trump’s ‘Truth’ Echoes 1984

In my recent opinion piece published in the Philadelphia Inquirer, I wrote: “The review of content at the President’s House is an Orwellian descent into censorship. It’s interpretive panels and books today. Will it be National Park Service videos and trading cards tomorrow?

Two days later, President Trump applied new pressure on Smithsonian interpretive texts and exhibitions. The Washington Post reported that White House officials are conducting a comprehensive review of Smithsonian museums:

The White House will launch a sweeping review of Smithsonian exhibitions, collections and operations ahead of America’s 250th-birthday celebrations next year — the first time the Trump administration has detailed steps to scrutinize the institution, which officials say should reflect the president’s call to restore “truth and sanity” to American history.

The vetting process would include reviewing public-facing and online content, curatorial processes and guidelines, exhibition planning and collection use, according to a letter sent to Smithsonian Secretary Lonnie G. Bunch III on Tuesday and signed by White House senior associate Lindsey Halligan, Domestic Policy Council Director Vince Hale and White House Office of Management and Budget chief Russell Vought.

[…]

The letter states that the initial review will focus on eight museums: the National Museum of American History, the National Museum of Natural History, the National Museum of African American History and Culture, the National Museum of the American Indian, the National Air and Space Museum, the Smithsonian American Art Museum, the National Portrait Gallery and the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden.

The American Association for State and Local History denounced the White House’s interference:

For nearly two centuries, the Smithsonian has served as a globally renowned model of scholarship and public engagement. Smithsonian museums and sites are beloved, trusted destinations for millions of visitors annually looking to gain knowledge, spark curiosity, and find connection. The administration is maligning the expertise and autonomy of an institution that represents the pinnacle of museum and scholarly practice.

This pressure on Smithsonian history museums, in particular, reveals the administration’s ambition to delegitimize the work of the history field and to rob the public of its ability to learn from the past. Sound historical practice depends upon meticulous research of a wide array of sources, open-minded embrace of complexity and ambiguity, and a willingness to update understandings as new information arises. Time and again, Americans have said that they want our country’s full story. Censoring and manipulating content to fit a predetermined, triumphalist narrative is the antithesis of historical practice and a disservice to us all.

Smithsonian exhibitions are grounded in scholarly research. The ahistorical, willfully ignorant Trump wants to impose his interpretation of American history.

Truth is, Trump knows little, if anything, about Black history. He thought Frederick Douglass was still alive in 2017.

While gleaning clues from Project 2025, Trump’s whitewashing of American history is foretold in George Orwell’s 1984:

The Party told you to reject the evidence of your eyes and ears. It was their final, most essential command.

[…]

And if all others accepted the lie which the Party imposed—if all records told the same tale—then the lie passed into history and became truth.

Trump’s Big Lie that the Smithsonian had “come under the influence of a divisive, race-centered ideology” is straight out of the dictator’s playbook.

Independence Hall

As the descendant of enslaved people, I mourn the Fourth of July.

However, Independence Hall has a prominent place in Black history.

Independence Hall is the place where the Second Continental Congress unanimously adopted the Declaration of Independence; 34 of the 56 signers, including Thomas Jefferson, enslaved Black people.

Independence Hall is the place where the U.S. Constitution, which counted enslaved people as three-fifths of a person and mandated that freedom seekers be returned to bondage, was signed.

Independence Hall is the place where, from 1850 to 1854, hearings were held to return the self-emancipated to slavery under the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850.

Independence Hall is the place where master silhouette artist Moses Williams worked “every day and evening.”

I have nominated Moses for a Pennsylvania historical marker. If the nomination is approved, the marker will be installed near Independence Hall in 2026.

For updates on Moses Williams’ nomination and walking tour, send your name and email address to phillyjazzapp@gmail.com.