After the Trump-appointed board voted to add President Donald Trump's name to the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, cancellations followed quickly. A veteran jazz ensemble walked away from New Year's Eve shows. A Christmas Eve jazz concert that had run for nearly two decades was called off. A New York dance company withdrew anniversary performances at a cost of $40,000. These were not symbolic gestures. They involved real money, professional risk, and decisions artists did not make lightly.
St. Clair's request to visit the White House was denied by the Secret Service due to outstanding warrants from his criminal history unveiling serious legal concerns.