Olivia of Troye - Erasing Dissent: Trump's Slow Burn War on the Arts

Throughout history, authoritarians and dictators have understood the power of the arts, both as a means of control and as a dangerous form of resistance. From Hitler's censorship of "degenerate art" to Stalin's iron grip on Soviet cultural expression to Kim Il Sung using the arts in North Korea to glorify his rule as Supreme Leader, strongmen have either sought to silence artists or to co-opt them into serving their agendas. In Trump's second term, we are seeing these familiar patterns emerge in the United States. His recent takeover of the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts and his ban on drag performances (more on this later) are not isolated cultural policies – they are part of a broader, more insidious effort to reshape American culture in his image, just as autocrats before him have done.

Trump's Long and Complicated History with the Arts

Donald Trump's relationship with the arts has always been transactional. He has never shown a genuine appreciation for artistic expression as a means of cultural or intellectual enrichment. Instead, he used art to inflate his ego, attempted to erase or defund art that challenged him, or manipulated cultural institutions to reinforce his power.

In keeping with his pattern of behavior where history repeats itself, his past actions foreshadowed what is happening now. In the 1980s, Trump famously demolished Art Deco sculptures meant to be preserved in the Bonwit Teller Building to make way for Trump Tower. It was a literal destruction of beauty and history in service of his ambition. In 2017, he disbanded the President's Committee on the Arts and the Humanities after its members resigned in protest over his response to the Charlottesville white nationalist rally. I remember vividly watching this play out while in my role at the Department of Homeland Security. It was apparent then, as it is now, that artistic voices, especially those that challenge bigotry and autocracy, would not be tolerated in Trump's America. Former President Joe Biden restored the Committee, but in Trump's first executive order of his second term, he revoked it again. Never mind that former President Ronald Reagan established the initiative aimed to enhance the nation's cultural life without relying solely on federal funding by establishing public-private partnerships. The original DOGE concept without the foolery?

Then there's Trump's approach to using the arts for his personal glorification. Let's be honest, his so-called "National Garden of American Heroes," reinstated this term, is not about celebrating American culture. The more likely explanation, given his narcissistic personality, is his ongoing positioning of himself as a defender of traditional American values and heritage. It's an attempt to align himself with these celebrated figures, enhancing his own legacy. The question remains: will this be a genuine celebration of diverse American contributions or a curated group of icons designed to reinforce his vision of national identity? The inclusion process will reveal much about the administration's goals for American history – and who is deemed worthy of remembrance. Place your bets and watch this space.

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