Epstein files show Haverford donor Howard Lutnick stayed in touch after claiming he cut ties, sparking calls to rename library; WHYY, March 17, 2026

 Rana Rastegari , WHYY; Epstein files show Haverford donor Howard Lutnick stayed in touch after claiming he cut ties, sparking calls to rename library

Students are calling for Lutnick Library to be renamed after documents revealed the U.S. commerce secretary maintained contact with Jeffrey Epstein years after his conviction.

"Students at Haverford College are calling on the school to rename its library and sever ties with one of its biggest donors after newly released Epstein files revealed continued contact between U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and convicted sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein.

Lutnick’s contributions to the college amount to $65 million. The largest gift was a $25 million donation in 2014 to renovate the campus library, which now bears his name.

Lutnick, a Haverford alumnus, had claimed to have cut ties with Epstein in 2005. However, documents released Jan. 30 confirm that the pair continued to communicate after 2008, when Epstein was convicted of soliciting sexual acts from a minor. In a U.S. Senate hearing in February, Lutnick testified that he had visited Epstein’s private island in 2012 with his wife and children. In February, a previously redacted image from the files was recovered, which shows Epstein, Lutnick and three other men on the island together."

D.C. activists once wrote letters to name MLK Library. They did it again to push out Jeff Bezos.; The Washington Post, February 11, 2022

Ellie Silverman, The Washington Post; D.C. activists once wrote letters to name MLK Library. They did it again to push out Jeff Bezos.

"“It’s a special thing to have a public bridge or a library or street named after you,” said Ann Bartow, a professor at the University of New Hampshire’s law school, who has researched the intersection of trademark law and naming rights. “Are we going to celebrate the people who made the most money? Are we going to celebrate people who gave their lives in the military? Are we going to celebrate teachers who worked hard and were underpaid for 30 years? That’s an expression of values.”...

“It’s more than just a library,” said Kaplan of American University, who remembers getting her start as a researcher in high school in MLK Library’s archives. “For many of us, it’s a place for safety, a place of pride, a place of promise for the future, a place where our history has always been celebrated, documented and displayed. And that raises the stakes.”...

The backlash, Reyes-Gavilan said, showed that the naming process “is flawed.” He said that the library system sent the Morrison family a letter about the naming and that it was unclear what their wishes are at this time.

Apologizing for “the aggravation the naming process has caused,” Reyes-Gavilan said during the meeting that “whatever happens next will be taking place in a much more public way.”"

After backlash, Jeff Bezos suggests naming library auditorium for Toni Morrison; NPR, February 7, 2022

MARTIN AUSTERMUHLE, NPR ; After backlash, Jeff Bezos suggests naming library auditorium for Toni Morrison

"Amazon founder Jeff Bezos has asked the D.C. Public Library to name an auditorium in the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library after famed late Black author Toni Morrison, instead of after him.

The request — first reported by The Washington Post — is an apparent response to growing criticism over last week's decision by library trustees to name it after Bezos in recognition of a $2.7 million donation he made to a childhood literacy program."