Trump’s new executive order targets what he describes as the spread of a “divisive, race-centered ideology” at museums.
United States President Donald Trump has announced plans to remove what he describes as “corrosive” anti-American ideology from the Smithsonian Institution, the world’s largest museum complex.
In one of his latest executive orders signed on Thursday, titled “Restoring Truth and Sanity to American History”, Trump placed Vice President JD Vance in charge of overseeing the changes to “restore the Smithsonian Institution to its rightful place as a symbol of inspiration and American greatness”.
“The Smithsonian Institution has, in recent years, come under the influence of a divisive, race-centered ideology,” Trump’s executive order states.
Exhibits at the American Art Museum and the National Museum of African American History and Culture were among the Smithsonian institutions singled out in Trump’s order for promoting “narratives that portray American and Western values as inherently harmful and oppressive”.
“Museums in our Nation’s capital should be places where individuals go to learn – not to be subjected to ideological indoctrination or divisive narratives that distort our shared history,” the executive order stated.
The Washington, DC-based institution includes 21 individual museums and the National Zoo. Some of the most popular include the National Museum of Natural History and the National Museum of American History. Vance is a member of the Smithsonian Institution’s Board of Regents.
“It is the policy of my Administration to restore Federal sites dedicated to history, including parks and museums, 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,” the order states.
The move against the Smithsonian follows a similar one by Trump in February to overhaul programming at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, DC. The president, similarly, appointed himself as chairman to oversee the changes.
Since his inauguration in January, Trump has moved to reverse policies supporting “diversity, equity and inclusion”- better known by the acronym DEI – that became widespread under his predecessor, President Joe Biden.
Trump and other Republicans also want to reverse the spread of “critical race theory”, which explores how racism is inherent in US institutions. The theory has gained mainstream acceptance in recent years, particularly on museum and university campuses, following a major racial reckoning set off by the 2020 police killing of George Floyd, a Black American man.
Under Trump’s executive order, the Smithsonian will be prohibited from hosting or funding exhibits that “degrade shared American values, divide Americans based on race, or promote programs or ideologies inconstant with Federal law and policy”.
The Women’s History Museum, which is still under development, was also banned from hosting exhibits that celebrate trans women.
The executive order called for the restoration of “Federal sites dedicated to history, including parks and museums” – suggesting some parts of the US could see the return of hundreds of Confederate monuments and symbols taken down since 2020.
