Nine members of the Kennedy family have joined litigation to stop the Trump administration from erecting a 250-foot triumphal arch across the Potomac River from Arlington National Cemetery.
Rory Kennedy, Maxwell Taylor Kennedy, Christopher G. Kennedy, Kerry Kennedy, Kathleen Kennedy Townsend, Joseph P. Kennedy Jr., Joseph P. Kennedy III, Edward M. Kennedy Jr. And Courtney Kennedy filed suit on November 10, adding their names to a legal fight that already has a federal judge’s attention. Judge Tanya Chutkan had issued a 14-day halt order on November 5, pausing construction as earlier challenges moved forward.
The family argues the structure would block views of President John F. Kennedy’s grave and thousands of other memorials at the Virginia cemetery where he was laid to rest following his assassination on November 22, 1963, in Dallas, Texas. Their lawsuit claims the arch will “cast a shadow” over the site and its memorials.
“This action is about protecting sacred spaces that belong to the American people. Our parents, Robert and Ethel Kennedy, and our uncles, President John F. Kennedy and Senator Edward M. Kennedy, are laid to rest at Arlington National Cemetery,” a statement on behalf of the Kennedys reads.
The family notes that their “Uncle Joseph P. Kennedy Jr., who lost his life serving our country in World War II,” is memorialized in the cemetery along with 400,000 veterans and family members. They contend that the president “has violated the laws and procedures established by Congress to protect this most sacred national memorial.”
“In bringing this lawsuit, we stand for those who can not stand for themselves,” they add.
The arch, bearing similarity to Paris’ Arc de Triomphe, is planned as a monument to commemorate America’s 250th independence anniversary. The Kennedy filing goes beyond physical obstruction, alleging the project would “cast a shadow over our democratic principles, undermining the safeguards established by our elected representatives to protect this hallowed ground for generations to come.”
“Our lawsuit asks the administration to respect the sanctity of Arlington National Cemetery, the laws established to protect it, and the rights of all Americans who come here to honor those who have served our country,” the family statement continues.
White House spokesperson David Ingle pushed back against the Kennedy family’s entry into the case. He said it was “unfortunate” that some Kennedy relatives had joined litigation against an arch he described as “intended to honor our heroes who rest in Arlington Cemetery.”
“The judiciary should not be abused to politicize a structure designed to unite our nation,” Ingle said.
“We will continue making the case for this beautiful and fitting monument and are confident we will be fully vindicated as this litigation proceeds,” the White House statement concluded.
The Kennedy family’s intervention marks a significant expansion of the legal opposition to the project, bringing one of America’s most prominent political names into direct conflict with an administration that has framed the arch as a unifying national tribute.