President Trump has ordered the Smithsonian to implement signage warning guests of its ideological push within its exhibits. The order follows the release of a report ripping the Smithsonian for its “political activism.”
The report concluded that the “Smithsonian Institution, and the National Museum of American History in particular, under its current leadership and current interpretive ideology, cannot be trusted to tell America’s story honestly and in a way that is inspiring, unifying, and worthy of our great republic.”
“By the intention and at the direction of current Museum and Smithsonian leadership, [National Museum of American History] NMAH has become subject to institutional capture by a radical, activist ideology that is fundamentally opposed to telling the noble, honest story of the great country we know and love,” it read.
Trump’s new executive order references the report, declaring that his administration must “take all available steps to ensure that the issues identified in the Report are addressed and to restore trust in the Smithsonian Institution.” One such step is to incorporate signage informing guests of the report’s conclusion.
“The Secretary of the Interior, acting through the Director of the National Park Service (NPS) and in coordination with the Assistant to the President for Domestic Policy, shall install temporary signage along the NPS-maintained sidewalks and walkways used by the public to access the Museum, informing visitors of the findings of the Report and of the policy set forth in section 1 of this order,” the order says. “Such signage shall notify visitors that the Museum exhibits should be renovated consistent with the findings in the Report and direct visitors to locations and resources for accurate information regarding America’s history.”
Last year, Trump issued a separate executive order targeting the Smithsonian. It said it “has, in recent years, come under the influence of a divisive, race-centered ideology,” a shift that Trump said has “promoted narratives that portray American and Western values as inherently harmful and oppressive.”
