Trump cited a ‘concerted and widespread effort to rewrite our Nation’s history’ as motivation for the action.
President Donald Trump has signed an
executive order to reintroduce a more traditional view of history throughout museums and national institutions.
Titled “Restoring Truth and Sanity to American History,” the March 27 order cites a “concerted and widespread effort to rewrite our Nation’s history” as motivation for “revitalizing key cultural institutions and reversing the spread of divisive ideology.”
The order calls for altering policies for the Smithsonian Institution and its museums, educational and research centers, and the National Zoo.
Vice President J.D. Vance and several other officials are tasked with removing “improper ideology” from the institutions and called on to add actions that will implement the administration’s call for historical accuracy.
The Trump
order aims to reverse what it calls a “revisionist movement” that has taken hold inside the Smithsonian and other federal historical sights.
Among other things, it cites the Smithsonian American Art Museum, which “claims that the United States has ‘used race to establish and maintain systems of power, privilege, and disenfranchisement.’”
The order also cites The National Museum of African American History and Culture, which “has proclaimed that ‘hard work,’ ‘individualism,’ and ’the nuclear family‘ are aspects of ’White culture,' and that ”The American Women’s History Museum plans to celebrate male athletes participating in women’s sports.”
As part of the overhaul, the president directed the Department of the Interior to assess if there are monuments, memorials, statues, markers, or other public displays that were removed or changed “to perpetuate a false reconstruction of American history.”
Agencies are ordered to reinstall monuments that were altered within the last few years in objection to various portions of American history and its historical figures, and calls on agencies to ensure they don’t contain descriptions that “inappropriately disparage Americans past or living.”
Protests and Changes
The executive order noted changes made by the previous administration, including at Independence National Historical Park in Philadelphia, where there was federally supported training for dismantling “Western foundations” and “interrogating institutional racism.”During his previous administration, Trump opposed the removal of Confederate monuments and those of America’s founders. He made headlines speaking about the issue in 2017 after a clash between protesters in support and against keeping the statue of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee in Charlottesville, Virginia.
They remained at the time, but in 2021 the city removed the statues of Lee and Confederate Gen. Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson. This came under a new presidential administration and in the aftermath of widespread demonstrations and riots in 2020 over the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis.
By this time, a wider discourse about racial issues in the United States took hold, and the
Confederate Monument Removal Act was introduced in 2021 by the 117th Congress. That legislation would have required the removal of all statues from the U.S. Capitol if the person had voluntarily served in the Confederate army. Similar
legislation was also introduced in the 118th Congress, but neither measure passed Congress.
A
report by the left-leaning Southern Poverty Law Center said that at least 167 Confederate symbols were either removed or renamed in 2020 and the following years.
Additional Actions
In addition to changes at the Smithsonian and other museums, the president’s order calls on the secretary of the Interior Department to restore properties that have been changed over the past five years.
The order notes that this is to prepare for July 4, 2026, the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence, and it calls for the revisions to be made before that date.
“By signing this Executive Order, President Trump is ensuring that American history is celebrated accurately, fairly, and with pride—honoring the remarkable progress, liberty, and ingenuity that define our great nation,” the administration
stated in a fact sheet.
Backlash to EO
Critics argue that the executive order is a way for the Trump administration to downplay black Americans’ contributions to the nation and explain away the difficulties that minorities have faced.
Activist and author Ibram X. Kendi called Trump’s move “a literal attack on Black America itself,” and argued that the National Museum of African American History and Culture, which the order criticizes, is “one of the heartbeats of Black America” and “also one of the heartbeats” of the nation at large.
Congressional Black Caucus Chair Yvette Clarke (D-N.Y.) asserted that Trump wants to distort the narrative on race: “We do not run from or erase our history simply because we don’t like it,” she said in a statement. “We embrace the history of our country—the good, the bad, and the ugly.”
The American Historical Association released
a statement on March 31, saying that the order “egregiously misrepresents the work of the Smithsonian Institution” and “completely misconstrues the nature of historical work.”
The press release lauded the Smithsonian as being “widely known for the integrity of its scholarship, which is careful and based on historical and scientific evidence.”
It went on: “The Institution ardently pursues the purpose for which it was established more than 175 years ago: ‘the increase and diffusion of knowledge.’”
In closing, the historical association said, “We learn from the past to inform how we can best shape our future. By providing a history with the integrity necessary to enable all Americans to be all they can possibly be, the Smithsonian is fulfilling its duty to all of us.”
The press release was signed by 22 organizations, including the American Association for Colleges of Teacher Education, the Civil Rights Movement Archive, the LGBTQ+ History Association, PEN America, and the Society for Historians of the Gilded Age and Progressive Era.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
What to Know About Trump’s Order on Museums, Monuments
Titled “Restoring Truth and Sanity to American History,” the March 27 order cites a “concerted and widespread effort to rewrite our Nation’s history” as motivation for “revitalizing key cultural institutions and reversing the spread of divisive ideology.”
The order calls for altering policies for the Smithsonian Institution and its museums, educational and research centers, and the National Zoo.
Vice President J.D. Vance and several other officials are tasked with removing “improper ideology” from the institutions and called on to add actions that will implement the administration’s call for historical accuracy.
Among other things, it cites the Smithsonian American Art Museum, which “claims that the United States has ‘used race to establish and maintain systems of power, privilege, and disenfranchisement.’”
The order also cites The National Museum of African American History and Culture, which “has proclaimed that ‘hard work,’ ‘individualism,’ and ’the nuclear family‘ are aspects of ’White culture,' and that ”The American Women’s History Museum plans to celebrate male athletes participating in women’s sports.”
As part of the overhaul, the president directed the Department of the Interior to assess if there are monuments, memorials, statues, markers, or other public displays that were removed or changed “to perpetuate a false reconstruction of American history.”
Protests and Changes
The executive order noted changes made by the previous administration, including at Independence National Historical Park in Philadelphia, where there was federally supported training for dismantling “Western foundations” and “interrogating institutional racism.”During his previous administration, Trump opposed the removal of Confederate monuments and those of America’s founders. He made headlines speaking about the issue in 2017 after a clash between protesters in support and against keeping the statue of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee in Charlottesville, Virginia.
They remained at the time, but in 2021 the city removed the statues of Lee and Confederate Gen. Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson. This came under a new presidential administration and in the aftermath of widespread demonstrations and riots in 2020 over the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis.
Additional Actions
In addition to changes at the Smithsonian and other museums, the president’s order calls on the secretary of the Interior Department to restore properties that have been changed over the past five years.The order notes that this is to prepare for July 4, 2026, the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence, and it calls for the revisions to be made before that date.
Backlash to EO
Critics argue that the executive order is a way for the Trump administration to downplay black Americans’ contributions to the nation and explain away the difficulties that minorities have faced.Activist and author Ibram X. Kendi called Trump’s move “a literal attack on Black America itself,” and argued that the National Museum of African American History and Culture, which the order criticizes, is “one of the heartbeats of Black America” and “also one of the heartbeats” of the nation at large.
Congressional Black Caucus Chair Yvette Clarke (D-N.Y.) asserted that Trump wants to distort the narrative on race: “We do not run from or erase our history simply because we don’t like it,” she said in a statement. “We embrace the history of our country—the good, the bad, and the ugly.”
The press release lauded the Smithsonian as being “widely known for the integrity of its scholarship, which is careful and based on historical and scientific evidence.”
It went on: “The Institution ardently pursues the purpose for which it was established more than 175 years ago: ‘the increase and diffusion of knowledge.’”
In closing, the historical association said, “We learn from the past to inform how we can best shape our future. By providing a history with the integrity necessary to enable all Americans to be all they can possibly be, the Smithsonian is fulfilling its duty to all of us.”
The press release was signed by 22 organizations, including the American Association for Colleges of Teacher Education, the Civil Rights Movement Archive, the LGBTQ+ History Association, PEN America, and the Society for Historians of the Gilded Age and Progressive Era.
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