Sonia De Los Santos cancels Kennedy Center shows, citing unwelcoming climate

NEW YORK (AP) — Grammy-nominated singer-songwriter Kennedy Center in Washington. She had been scheduled to give two concerts for young people on Feb. 7, followed by a “creative conversation” with the audience.

De Los Santos, a Mexican American whose 2018 release “¡Alegría!” received a Latin Grammy nomination for best children’s album, cited her background as a reason for calling off the shows.

“As an artist, I treasure the freedom to create and share my music, and for many years I have used this privilege to uplift the stories of immigrants in this country,” she wrote Thursday on Instagram. “Unfortunately, I do not feel that the current climate at this beloved venue represents a welcoming space for myself, my band, or our audience.”

In an email to The Associated Press, De Los Santos shared her Instagram statement and said she would have no additional comment. Kennedy Center spokesperson Roma Daravi challenged De Los Santos’ citing of immigration policy.

“This country was built on legal immigrants and as a first generation American, I find her statement highly offensive,” Daravi wrote in an email. “Refusing to engage with an institution open to everyone is, in fact, a step towards discrimination.”

Artists ranging from “Hamilton” creator Lin-Manuel Miranda to rock star Peter Wolf have called off events at the Kennedy Center since President Donald Trump ousted the previous leadership early last year and arranged for himself to head the board of trustees. Trump has highlighted the Kennedy Center in his wide-ranging fight against what he calls “woke” bias at cultural institutions.

The board’s decision in December to rebrand the venue the Trump-Kennedy Center, a change that scholars say can only be enacted through Congress, led to a new wave of cancellations. Jazz musician Chuck Redd called off a planned Christmas Eve show, and the jazz group The Cookers withdrew from their New Year’s Eve concerts.

Last week, the Grammy-winning banjo player Bela Fleck announced that he had canceled three scheduled appearances next month with the National Symphony Orchestra, writing on social media that playing at the center had become “charged and political.” Ric Grenell, a diplomat and Trump ally whom the president appointed to lead the center, wrote on X that Fleck had “made it political and caved to the woke mob.”

Other recent withdrawals include “Wicked” composer Stephen Schwartz, who had been expected to host an opera gala in the spring, and the variety show Asian AF, whose shows in May were listed as canceled on the Kennedy Center website, then removed entirely. Daravi cited a “scheduling conflict.” A representative for Asian AF did not immediately responds to requests for comment.