American Museums Under Attack

Preserving history and experiences is one of the main objectives of museums. The atrocities that are happening in the US with trying to take control of these histories is utterly immoral. For those who don't know, back in March, Trump put out an order to ‘restore truth and sanity’ to American history. Long boring story short, the administration is saying that individuals (not named) are trying to distort and revise American history. As the order states: ‘Our nation’s unparalleled legacy of advancing liberty, individual rights, and human happiness is reconstructed as inherently racist, sexist, oppressive, or otherwise irredeemably flawed.’ Again, the order does not insist who is doing this and wishes to ignore the wrongdoings that have happened in the US, only for a glamorized cookie cutter version of the country. Fortunately, history is not fantasy. You cannot just erase a time, situation, or event because it does not fit the image you wish to convey. Trump himself for decades has wanted to revise history, but why? We’ll look at that down below; back to the madness that had occurred. While ignoring and trying to cover up real history, they wish to create positive monuments to completely distort what it means to be American. With these elements alone, it sounds like Trump is wanting the country to act like a theme park rather than looking at history that is hard to face. Within this order, one of the museums that has been attacked the most is the Smithsonian. Trump and his government believe they have distorted history or tried reconstructing it. As some of us historians know who have worked in museums before that specific changes take time. Trump released a statement in August in regards to the museum and wants a full internal review conducted. What does this entail? They want to review exhibits, past grants, interviewing curators on exhibition processes, exhibit planning, collection usage, and narrative standards. For those wondering why this is a big deal, it is not just erasing history but commencing a domino affect that will happen. With this order, they also wish to interrogate other museums such as the National Museum of American History, National Museum of Natural History, National Portrait Gallery, and many others.

While the Smithsonian museum is not a federal agency itself, Trump does not have the authority to change or revise anything without the museums consent since they are private. 

However, while the museums are governed by boards, Trump can threaten to take or freeze any funding they may receive. Unless they change any aspects of exhibits he wishes, the funding would be taken. This is easily seen throughout his plan of reducing staff and funding with the National Endowment for the Humanities and the Institute of Museum and Library Services. The director from the IMPS himself testified in court that Trumps administration cancelled around 90% of the grants they received. Out of the mass amounts of grants they previously had gotten, around 100 are left. While he does not have the authority, Trump tried getting the Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery director Kim Sajet fired since she is a supporter of inclusivity. Unfortunately, she resigned two weeks after his threat and now works for the Milwaukee Art Museum. 

 The main issue with Trump wanting to bring in internal interviewers is that they do not have the education or experience to implement future changes. What do I mean by this? Museum professionals such as curators, archivists, and even directors need to have a basic education in regards to museum protocols. Most curators and directors hold masters degrees or even PHDs in the field they are working in. Curators have also had extensive training in museum studies due to the multiple components of the position. They need to understand how to handle artifacts, exhibit curation, accessions, and more. Professionals within these institutions also know how to create exhibits in such a way that the public will understand the history or experience being shown. You can’t get all academic with people, you need to make it accessible and understandable to the public. Once an exhibit is shown in such a way, individuals visiting these museums will learn and actually (hopefully) take the lessons from them. The literal component of exhibits  is based on scholarship and research done by professionals, along with interviews or primary records from people who lived through them. 

You cannot just bring someone in to change these experiences to a narrative the administration wants. It not only takes away the authenticity or experiences lived but creates division by revising a historical event. 

Trump wants his own narrative of history shown, rather than the hard truths that America is  built upon. The administration has already started implementing these changes, including revising certain exhibits or getting rid of pertinent information. 

Before looking at just a few of these changes, recently, the administration put out yet another document (it never ends) supposedly based upon public submissions. While there is no proof of this, the document itself shows ‘problematic’ exhibits that apparently distort American history. These exhibits are at seven separate museums including: National Museum of the American Latino, the National Museum of Natural History, the National Museum of African Art, the National Portrait Gallery, the Smithsonian American Art Museum and the National Museum of Asian Art.

 Trump made an announcement on Truth Social that the ‘Smithsonian is out of control!’ in response to the report. One exhibit under question is in regards to Benjamin Franklin since it shows his vast scientific prowess while also including that he had owned slaves. There are many other examples, but again, Trump is trying to distort American history. The White House budget director, Russ Vought, even sent letters to the museums wanting information about the exhibits. He wants ‘divisive’ language changed to a more ‘appropriate’ tone. 

Changes have already been made to other exhibits that are not even mentioned. An exhibit in reference to Trumps impeachment was recently removed and reinstated on August 8th. When the exhibit was removed, officials stated that they were not pressured by Trump in any way, while only including three other presidents who almost faced removal. The updated exhibit has both of Trumps impeachments close to the bottom of it. A few changes were also made to the placard that are important to note. For his first impeachment, they changed the wording of the text ‘solicitation of foreign influence in the 2020 presidential election and defiance of Congressional subpoenas’; now the word ‘alleged’ is included. The second impeachment now has the phrase ‘false statements’ taken out in regards to the loss of the 2020 election. While these are minor changes, they still have an impact and can clearly entail what his revisionist goals truly are.

Another exhibit being changed is in the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. It looks at the countries response in regards to Nazi Germany and has been closed since labour day while they make ‘upgrades.’ Staff are even concerned over this closure not only due to a narrative change, but the fact it will not open again until February 2026. The reasoning behind the closure is due to an email that was sent to them in June. The museum released a statement saying: "The current plan is to close the exhibition on September 2, 2025 and reopen on February 28, 2026. ‘Once closed, Technical Services, Operations, Exhibit Experience, and Collections Services will work together to upgrade the gallery and the exhibition. Once the work is completed, 'Americans and the Holocaust' can remain open through 2032 with little to no additional support. Please feel free to reach out with questions and concerns.” With that last statement, did Trump threaten funding if a specific narrative was not curated the way he sees fit? The museum is not affiliated with the Smithsonian but does receive millions in federal funding along with private donors. This is clearly an example of how Trump is using his power, in regards to funding for museums to change exhibits to his revisionist vision of American history. Another interesting fact to note is that in April, Trump fired five democrats who were on the board and replaced them; truly makes you wonder. But wait, there’s more. There have been changes at the Museum of Jewish Heritage in New York who have taken down photos of Trump from an exhibit on hate speech. This clearly is not just one Jewish museum being under attack but a list ensuing. 

With the Holocaust museum, the exhibit named ‘Americans and the Holocaust’ began in 2018 and looks at how America responded to the Holocaust while emphasizing at how the depression, racism, and antisemitism shaped opinions during that time. One component of the exhibit being reviews is in regards to a statement made by Theodore Roosevelt. President Roosevelt rendered the murder of European Jews as ‘one of the greatest crimes in history and that the state department had tried to cover up their guilt through lies and misinterpretations.’ While Trump has appointed new members to their board, changes he wishes to see will probably be implemented in order to retain funding. One of these appointed members even released an op-ed in June titled: ‘Make the Holocaust Memorial Council Great Again.’ He stated that when the exhibit was created, antisemitism was seen as a thing of the past, while combating other forms of hate being seen as more relevant. Oliner is concerned that antisemitism will seem irrelevant and notes that the exhibit needs to show that it is the worlds oldest hatred while educating individuals on Jewish endurance.

While these are only a few examples, there’s a literal news update everyday on the matter. This is not only censorship but a man put in a powerful position trying to revise history itself. These actions do not show the leadership of a qualified or experienced leader, but one of a dictator that wishes to convey his version of America. As someone who is a historian by trade, leave history to the professionals.