Donald Trump’s National Park 'Ideology’ Plan Backfires
Trump’s Attempt To Have National Parks Visitors Flag ‘Improper Ideology’ Backfires
One of the stranger elements of President Donald Trump’s second term has been his administration’s focus on removing “improper ideology” from national parks and museums. In addition to an executive order focused on rewriting how American history is told at the nation’s parks and museums, the Trump administration also began a survey last year asking visitors to flag exhibits that present a “negative” portrayal of America. That survey doesn’t seem to have gone as planned, as the majority of responses instead attacked the Trump administration for conducting the survey in the first place.
AP examined the 35,000 public comments, and the large majority of them attacked Trump and his administration’s attempt to downplay or outright erase the more uncomfortable aspects of American history. The comments were released due to a FOIA request by KOAA News.
“Hey Donald Trump!” wrote a person in North Dakota’s Theodore Roosevelt National Park, “Trying to erase history doesn’t mean it didn’t still happen!”
“Trump’s idea of having Americans call in and snitch on each other … is straight out of the fascist playbook he’s literally acting like Hitler or Mussolini,” wrote one visitor.
A visitor to Gateway Arch National Park in St. Louis had a thoughtful response to why showcasing the horrors of American history is necessary. “We had a great time learning about the development of this site, including the difficult parts of our American story,” the visitor wrote. “We need those reminders to help us become even better in the future.”
Of the 35,000 comments submitted, only 47 of them actually flagged exhibits and supported their removal.
From AP:
Considering that the National Park Service logged some 323 million visits at more than 400 sites last year, the 35,000 initial public comments received from June to January and released following a lawsuit was a tepid response.
An order by Interior Secretary Doug Burgum last year targeted “inappropriate content” including any signs and exhibits “negative about either past or living Americans or that fail to emphasize the beauty, grandeur, and abundance of landscapes and other natural features.”
The order following one by President Donald Trump on “Restoring Truth and Sanity to American History” sought to emphasize the achievements of America and splendor of its landscape.
The goal, Burgum wrote, was to restore sites to “solemn and uplifting public monuments that remind Americans of our extraordinary heritage, consistent progress toward becoming a more perfect Union, and unmatched record of advancing liberty, prosperity, and human flourishing.”
As a result of that order, the Trump administration has already taken steps to remove exhibits it deemed “improper” ideology from national parks, museums, and monuments. An exhibit dedicated to the slaves owned by George Washington at the President’s House in Philadelphia was briefly removed earlier this year before a judge ordered it to be restored.
The comments make it abundantly clear that the public is overwhelmingly against this effort to rewrite United States history. Considering that each time the Trump administration tries to remove an exhibit, it’s met with backlash and lawsuits, you’d think it’d move on from it. But since the Trump administration has no solutions to address the cost-of-living crisis, the stagnant job market, or any of the issues facing working-class Americans, I guess racist distractions are the only move it can make.
SEE ALSO:
Donald Trump Is Now Beefing With Stephen A. Smith, And, Well, That’s Interesting
Can Trump Cancel Juneteenth? Here’s What We Know
Trump’s Attempt To Have National Parks Visitors Flag ‘Improper Ideology’ Backfires was originally published on newsone.com
