Norman Lear is the famed writer/creator of such groundbreaking television shows as All in the Family, Good Times and Sanford and Sons. There’s a very good chance that if you ever enjoyed a sit come in your life, Norman Lear created it. As a result of his long and storied popular cultural career, when the Kennedy Center announced its honorees this year, Lear’s name was not a surprise. Also not a surprise is that Mr. Lear, a lifelong outspoken liberal, isn’t particularly interested in hob-knobbing with our orange in chief. As he tells the New York Times:
In an interview, Mr. Lear said he had already informed the Kennedy Center that he would forgo the White House reception, a rare move in the Honors’ 39-year history.
“This is a presidency that has chosen to neglect totally the arts and humanities — deliberately defund them — and that doesn’t rest pleasantly with me,” said Mr. Lear, the creative force behind pivotal sitcoms, including “All in the Family” and “The Jeffersons,” that created political conversation in American households. He also founded People for the American Way, a nonprofit organization opposing right-wing extremism.
Lear elaborated on his position to NPR.
"As an artist and a human being, I cannot celebrate this incredible honor ... at a White House that has no interest in supporting the Arts and Humanities," the legendary television producer and writer tells NPR's Elizabeth Blair.
Well done.
