Kennedys sue to block Trump’s arch, arguing it would cast shadow on JFK’s grave

The family of former US President John F Kennedy has sued to block construction of a triumphal arch that President Donald Trump plans to build in the nation’s capital.

Nine members of the political dynasty argue the 250ft (76m) structure would block the view of Kennedy’s grave, as well as the graves of thousands of veterans buried at Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia.

Last week, a US judge temporarily halted the project on the heels of a vote allowing construction to proceed.

The White House said it was “unfortunate” to see that some members of the Kennedy family had joined litigation against an arch “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,” White House spokesman Davis R Ingle said in a statement to the BBC.

“We will continue making the case for this beautiful and fitting monument and are confident we will be fully vindicated as this litigation proceeds,” he added.

Last week the project won approval from the National Capital Planning Commission.

But US District Judge Tanya Chutkan then ruled there should be a 14-day pause before any work can start on the arch as litigation plays out.

The Kennedy family filed its complaint under a joint lawsuit brought by the state of Virginia and Washington DC seeking to block construction, arguing that the arch will damage “historically significant sightlines” if erected at the gateway of the cemetery.

The plaintiffs include seven children of Robert and Ethel Kennedy, as well as their grandson – former Democrat congressman Joe Kennedy – and Ted Kennedy’s son Edward Kennedy Jr.

It does not include Trump cabinet official Robert F Kennedy Jr, who leads the Department of Health and Human Services.

Their motion moves to intervene in two other lawsuits filed by conservationists and veterans seeking to halt the construction.

They say the arch would be a “permanent denigration” of the gravesites and that the Kennedy offspring “would never again be able to appreciate both sites as they always have before, and as the Kennedy family always intended”.

The Kennedy family argues the structure “will permanently cast shadows over and damage historically significant sightlines to the existing gravesites and memorials established in the Kennedy family’s honor” at the cemetery.

The structure would also “fundamentally alter the experience of visiting the gravesites”, including the memorials of hundreds of thousands of US veterans, the Kennedys said.

The complaint said that the National Park Service and Interior Department authorised construction on 5 November 2026 without the necessary congressional approval.

The so-called Arc de Trump is one of the president’s efforts to remake the capital city and is meant to commemorate the country’s 250th anniversary.

Last year, he also added his name to the Kennedy Center, a major Washington DC cultural institution named in honour of JFK.

Trump’s name remained on the facade for six months until the addition was ruled illegal and removed.