JFK Library in Boston, closed briefly due to Trump executive order, reopens
The JFK Library in Boston reopened Wednesday morning, one day after the library's foundation said an executive order by President Trump affected federal employees working there and caused it to close temporarily.
Visitors began reentering the John F. Kennedy Library and Museum in Dorchester at 10 a.m.
On Tuesday, the library closed abruptly at 2 p.m. and members of the public who were inside had to be escorted out. Visitors said library employees appeared to be in shock.
Why did the JFK Library close?
A sign posted to the door of the library on Tuesday said "Due to an Executive Order concerning a 'reduction in force (RIF),' the JFK Library and Museum will be closed to the public until further notice."
The JFK Library Foundation said a "sudden dismissal of federal employees" at the library forced it to close. According to former Congressman Joe Kennedy III, President Kennedy's grand nephew, the library got a call from the National Archives on Tuesday morning that said all probationary employees were being laid off immediately.
The Trump administration has ordered government agencies to lay off workers who haven't gained civil service protections as the president tries to shrink the size of the federal workforce.
One woman protesting outside the library on Wednesday morning before it reopened held a sign that read "This is not efficiency. This is idiocracy!"
"It's an important part of the community and the workers here make that possible," said the woman, who did not want to give her name.
She said the library is where she and her disabled daughter come weekly to learn and relax while they wait for her other daughter to finish class at UMass Boston.
"It's a safe environment. There's a lot to offer here," she said.
Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey and Sen. Elizabeth Warren joined Kennedy in speaking out against the layoffs.
"I would like to think that it was not a deliberate target at the Kennedy Library, but I think what we've seen is that there is not exactly a whole lot of thought given to what are the consequences of these actions," Kennedy said.
JFK Library reopens
The National Archives Public and Media Communications staff said in a statement Tuesday evening that the library would be reopening the next day.
"The John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum will be open tomorrow, and the National Archives staff looks forward to welcoming guests, visitors, and researchers," the statement said.
JFK Library board member Stephen Kennedy Smith told CNN that six employees were fired, and they handled ticketing and public events at the library.
"We did get the library open because the senior staff and archivists agreed to volunteer, so they are now manning the desk and handling the public," he said. "But it's just a very chaotic and ill-thought-through way to deal with an important public institution."
Katie Voss, visiting from New York, said bringing her 13-year-old son to the museum became a priority after hearing about its closure.
"How is this making America great?" she asked. "I want to make sure [my son] has the opportunity to learn about our democracy and the importance of history."
