Latest news with #Smithsonian
CBS News
2 hours ago
- Entertainment
- CBS News
Trump fires director of the Smithsonian's National Portrait Gallery
President Trump is terminating the head of the Smithsonian Institution's National Portrait Gallery, continuing his aggressive moves to reshape the federal government's cultural institutions. Mr. Trump announced Friday on his Truth Social platform that he was ousting Director Kim Sajet, calling her a "highly partisan person, and a strong supporter of DEI, which is totally inappropriate for her position." Sajet, a Dutch citizen raised in Australia, was appointed to the post in 2013 by former President Barack Obama. She had previously served as president of the Historical Society of Pennsylvania. Director of Smithsonian's National Portrait Gallery Kim Sajet speaks on stage during the unveiling of Oprah Winfrey's portrait at the Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery on December 13, 2023 in Washington, Smithsonian's National Portrait Gallery Mr. Trump has repeatedly criticized the national network of museums and cultural centers as leftist and anti-American. In March, the president signed an executive order targeting funding for programs at the Smithsonian Institution that contain what he characterized as "divisive, race-centered ideology." That order tasked Vice President JD Vance, who serves on the Smithsonian Institution's Board of Regents, with overseeing efforts to "remove improper ideology" from all areas of the institution, including its museums, education and research centers and the National Zoo. In February, he also ousted the leadership of the Kennedy Center for Performing Arts, which is part of the Smithsonian Institution, dismissing the chairman and president and replacing most of the board with loyalists, who then voted Mr. Trump the new chairman.
Yahoo
6 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Trump Says He's Fired Director of National Portrait Gallery … Over ‘DEI'
President Donald Trump's assault of the Smithsonian Institution and diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives continued on Friday. The president announced on Truth Social that he was firing Kim Sajet, the director of the Smithsonian's National Portrait Gallery, and accused her of being 'a highly partisan person.' 'Upon the request and recommendation of many people, I am herby terminating the employment of Kim Sajet as Director of the National Portrait Gallery,' Trump wrote in his post. 'She is a highly partisan person, and a strong supporter of DEI, which is totally inappropriate for her position. Her replacement will be named shortly.' Whether the president has the authority to terminate Sajet is unclear, as the gallery runs under the purview of the Smithsonian Institution. The representative for the National Portrait Gallery or the Smithsonian did not immediately respond to Rolling Stone's request for comment. According to her biography on the National Portrait Gallery website, Sajet was the first woman to serve as director of the Smithsonian's art museum in Washington, D.C. Prior to that, per the bio, she was the president and CEO of the Historical Society of Pennsylvania, the vice president and deputy director of the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, and the director of corporate relations at the Philadelphia Museum of Art. In February, Trump's appointed himself chairman of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts — leading to a cascade of program and artist cancellations following the news — and a month later, the president announced his executive order to eliminate 'anti-American ideology' from the Smithsonian Institution. Trump ordered that spending on exhibits or programs that 'degrade shared American values, divide Americans based on race, or promote programs or ideologies inconsistent with Federal law and policy' would be prohibited and directed Vice President JD Vance to lead the purge within the institution. The Smithsonian spans 21 museums and, per its website, is the world's largest museum, education and research complex, encompassing 14 education and research centers, and the National Zoo. The National Portrait Gallery currently features an exhibition containing pictures of every US president and concludes with Kehinde Wiley's popular 2018 painting of Barack Obama and a photo of Donald Trump, taken by Matt McClain in 2017. The succinct caption for Trump reads: 'Impeached twice, on charges of abuse of power and incitement of insurrection after supporters attacked the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021, he was acquitted by the Senate in both trials. After losing to Joe Biden in 2020, Trump mounted a historic comeback in the 2024 election. He is the only president aside from Grover Cleveland (1837-1908) to have won a nonconsecutive second term.' When speaking to the Guardian last year, Sajet — a daughter of Dutch immigrants who was born in Nigeria, raised in Australia, and is a citizen of the Netherlands — reflected on her role at the gallery. 'I have a great love for the United States and it's home for me but I do think that there is a real advantage in also being able to stand back,' said Sajet. 'Maybe part of my advantage is to say actually what began in the United States has this ripple effect. Reminding Americans of the tremendous gift that they've given to all of us is always a good thing.' She added, 'I'm very proud of being at the portrait gallery of the United States because there are such remarkable people that have shifted the needle not just within the US but across the globe.' More from Rolling Stone Trump Addresses Possible Sean Combs Pardon: 'I Would Certainly Look at the Facts' Trump at Musk's Farewell Press Conference: 'Elon's Not Really Leaving' The Supreme Court's Latest Gift to Trump Will Be 'Disastrous' for the Environment Best of Rolling Stone The Useful Idiots New Guide to the Most Stoned Moments of the 2020 Presidential Campaign Anatomy of a Fake News Scandal The Radical Crusade of Mike Pence
Yahoo
7 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Trump Says He's Fired Director of National Portrait Gallery … Over ‘DEI'
President Donald Trump's assault of the Smithsonian Institution and diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives continued on Friday. The president announced on Truth Social that he was firing Kim Sajet, the director of the Smithsonian's National Portrait Gallery, and accused her of being 'a highly partisan person.' 'Upon the request and recommendation of many people, I am herby terminating the employment of Kim Sajet as Director of the National Portrait Gallery,' Trump wrote in his post. 'She is a highly partisan person, and a strong supporter of DEI, which is totally inappropriate for her position. Her replacement will be named shortly.' Whether the president has the authority to terminate Sajet is unclear, as the gallery runs under the purview of the Smithsonian Institution. The representative for the National Portrait Gallery or the Smithsonian did not immediately respond to Rolling Stone's request for comment. According to her biography on the National Portrait Gallery website, Sajet was the first woman to serve as director of the Smithsonian's art museum in Washington, D.C. Prior to that, per the bio, she was the president and CEO of the Historical Society of Pennsylvania, the vice president and deputy director of the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, and the director of corporate relations at the Philadelphia Museum of Art. In February, Trump's appointed himself chairman of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts — leading to a cascade of program and artist cancellations following the news — and a month later, the president announced his executive order to eliminate 'anti-American ideology' from the Smithsonian Institution. Trump ordered that spending on exhibits or programs that 'degrade shared American values, divide Americans based on race, or promote programs or ideologies inconsistent with Federal law and policy' would be prohibited and directed Vice President JD Vance to lead the purge within the institution. The Smithsonian spans 21 museums and, per its website, is the world's largest museum, education and research complex, encompassing 14 education and research centers, and the National Zoo. The National Portrait Gallery currently features an exhibition containing pictures of every US president and concludes with Kehinde Wiley's popular 2018 painting of Barack Obama and a photo of Donald Trump, taken by Matt McClain in 2017. The succinct caption for Trump reads: 'Impeached twice, on charges of abuse of power and incitement of insurrection after supporters attacked the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021, he was acquitted by the Senate in both trials. After losing to Joe Biden in 2020, Trump mounted a historic comeback in the 2024 election. He is the only president aside from Grover Cleveland (1837-1908) to have won a nonconsecutive second term.' When speaking to the Guardian last year, Sajet — a daughter of Dutch immigrants who was born in Nigeria, raised in Australia, and is a citizen of the Netherlands — reflected on her role at the gallery. 'I have a great love for the United States and it's home for me but I do think that there is a real advantage in also being able to stand back,' said Sajet. 'Maybe part of my advantage is to say actually what began in the United States has this ripple effect. Reminding Americans of the tremendous gift that they've given to all of us is always a good thing.' She added, 'I'm very proud of being at the portrait gallery of the United States because there are such remarkable people that have shifted the needle not just within the US but across the globe.' More from Rolling Stone Trump Addresses Possible Sean Combs Pardon: 'I Would Certainly Look at the Facts' Trump at Musk's Farewell Press Conference: 'Elon's Not Really Leaving' The Supreme Court's Latest Gift to Trump Will Be 'Disastrous' for the Environment Best of Rolling Stone The Useful Idiots New Guide to the Most Stoned Moments of the 2020 Presidential Campaign Anatomy of a Fake News Scandal The Radical Crusade of Mike Pence
Reuters
8 hours ago
- General
- Reuters
Trump fires National Portrait Gallery director, citing DEI support
May 30 (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump said on Friday he had fired the director of the National Portrait Gallery in Washington, D.C., describing her as a supporter of diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives and saying she was inappropriate for the role. Trump did not cite any specific actions or comments by Kim Sajet that may have triggered her firing, which he announced in a brief social media post. Representatives for Sajet, the National Portrait Gallery and the Smithsonian Institution, which owns the museum, did not immediately reply to requests for comment. "Upon the request and recommendation of many people, I am herby terminating the employment of Kim Sajet," Trump said in his post on Truth Social. "She is a highly partisan person, and a strong supporter of DEI, which is totally inappropriate for her position." He added a new gallery director would be named soon. Sajet was the first woman to serve as director of the gallery, a landmark Washington institution that houses portraits of distinguished Americans, including every president. It contains over 26,000 works, according to its website. It was not immediately clear whether Trump had the legal authority to fire Sajet. The Smithsonian is technically independent of the federal government, despite receiving most of its budget from the U.S. Congress. Sajet's firing is the latest salvo in Trump's war against DEI initiatives. It also comes as Trump seeks to reshape the capital's arts and culture scene, including by dismissing Kennedy Center board members and installing himself as chairman. Trump's DEI actions have alarmed advocates, who say they effectively erase decades of hard-fought progress on leveling the playing field for marginalized communities. Trump's administration claims DEI initiatives are discriminatory and stifle merit. Sajet, a Nigerian-born art historian, has served as the gallery's director since 2013. In a 2015 interview with the Washington Post, opens new tab, Sajet reflected on the gallery's efforts to examine issues of race and gender. "Where are all the women and African Americans?" Sajet told the Post of the gallery's collection. "We can't correct the ills of history. Women and men and women of color — their portraits weren't taken. How are we going to show the presence of absence?"
The Guardian
8 hours ago
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
Trump fires National Portrait Gallery director in latest conflict with arts
Donald Trump says he is firing the first female director of the National Portrait Gallery, which contained a caption that referenced the attack on the US Capitol that his supporters carried out in early 2021. The president announced the sacking Friday through a post on his social media platform that accused Sajet – born in Nigeria, raised in Australia and a citizen of the Netherlands – of being 'a strong supporter' of diversity initiatives that his administration opposes as well as 'highly partisan'. He cited no evidence for either claim. In its collection of portraits of American presidents, the gallery had this text about Trump: 'Impeached twice, on charges of abuse of power and incitement of insurrection after supporters attacked the US Capitol on January 6, 2021, he was acquitted by the Senate in both trials. After losing to Joe Biden in 2020, Trump mounted a historic comeback in the 2024 election. He is the only president aside from Grover Cleveland (1837-1908) to have won a nonconsecutive second term.' Sajet arrived in the US with her family in 1997, held positions at the Philadelphia Museum of Art, the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, and the Historical Society of Pennsylvania and was appointed director of the National Portrait Gallery in 2013, according to a Guardian profile of her. The National Portrait Gallery is an art museum in Washington DC that opened in 1968 and is part of the Smithsonian Institution. It boasts the only complete collection of presidential portraits outside the White House. After beginning his second presidency in January, Trump issued an executive order directing the removal of 'improper, divisive or anti-American ideology' from the institution's storied museums. Sajet had said the gallery under her leadership tried 'very hard to be even-handed when we talk about people and that's the key'. 'Everyone has an opinion about American presidents, good, bad and indifferent,' Sajet said. 'We hear it all, but generally I think we've done pretty well.'
