Hands Off the Arts and Free DC will protest the FIFA 2026 World Cup draw on Friday, December 5 from Juarez Circle near the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. Organizers expect more than 100 participants to voice concerns that federal agencies including ICE may use the World Cup to justify inc reased surveillance, targeting, and harassment of both international and domestic soccer fans. Organizers also seek to draw attention to the corrupt dealings between FIFA and Kennedy Center chairman, President Trump, who is allowing the multi-billion organization to use the Center for free.  The protest, dubbed “No ICE in my Cup!”, will mobilize Free DC’s soccer community, the Free Spirits, to speak out against the Trump administration’s immigration policies. Organizers cite fears that are mounting nationally among fans of the beautiful game. In June, U.S. Customs and Border Patrol removed a social media post that sparked fears of an immigration crackdown. “Trump and FIFA are preparing a spectacle at the Kennedy Center while federal law enforcement agencies make plans that threaten the safety and freedom of the fans,” said protest organizer and Free Spirits member Slobodan Milic. “Trump and FIFA deserve a red card.”  Last month, The Washington Post reported that the Kennedy Center would allow FIFA exclusive use of a majority of the Kennedy Center free of charge. This is just one of many examples of “favoritism, self-dealing and waste” alleged by the U.S. Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works and reported on in The New York Times. The accusations underscore deepening corruption between the U.S. federal government and FIFA. In a move they criticize as corrupt, Hands Off the Arts and Free DC also expect FIFA to award a peace prize to the president at the draw event.  By joining the protest, Hands Off the Arts expands its resistance to federal interference at one of the city’s premier cultural institutions. Amid the Trump administration’s escalating attacks on DC this year, Free DC has cultivated a clear stance rejecting the District’s use as a stage for unchecked executive power. The FIFA 2026 World Cup draw is yet another example of the administration leveraging the city’s profile to advance authoritarian spectacle. Friday’s protest offers a joyful moment for Hands Off the Arts and Free DC to stand together and assert the District’s right to self-determination and freedom from federal overreach. Event Details: What: No ICE in my Cup! Protest When: Friday, December 5, 11 AM – 1 PM Where: Juarez Circle, 2500 New Hampshire Ave NW How: Sign up for more details District residents, soccer fans and arts lovers alike are invited to stand in solidarity with one another at this all-ages celebration and protest. Background: The World Cup draw weekend is a coronation of sorts for President Trump. In addition to the FIFA Peace Prize that is expected to be awarded to Mr. Trump during Friday’s draw, the president will reportedly host The Kennedy Center Honors on Sunday, December 7. The Kennedy Center Honors are annual honors given to those in the performing arts for their lifetime of contributions to American culture. Normally selected by a committee, this year’s Honorees were approved by the president. Government interference in the storied cultural institution began just weeks into President Trump’s second term. Kennedy Center workers responded by organizing a labor union of nearly 200 arts administrators, calling themselves Kennedy Center United Arts Workers. The workers organized to protect their jobs and keep partisan interference out of the arts institution. Center leadership has since engaged in union busting by firing union supporters and blocking a union election from happening, forcing the workers into a 5-day hearing with the National Labor Relations Board in early June. Results of the hearing are still pending. Hands Off the Arts is a coalition organizing in solidarity with the artists and workers who are fighting to keep our stages, screens and galleries free — free from government control, censorship, and the erasure of whole cultures from view. They seek to rally the DMV arts community to stand up to, stop, and finally reverse the trend of partisan interference in the arts. The coalition are arts workers and patrons, unionists, LGBTQIA+ activists, and free speech advocates. The post Protest against World Cup draw at KenCen set for this morning, December 5 appeared first on DC Theater Arts. ...read more read less