Trump Administration Moves Forward With Warning Signs Outside Smithsonian
The Trump administration is moving forward with plans to install warning signs outside Smithsonian museums, beginning with the National Museum of American History, claiming exhibits advance “personal, radical ideologies” and portray the US negatively. Interior Secretary Doug Burgum said in a September 3 letter to senators Lisa Murkowski and Jeff Merkley that about a dozen signs would cost $7,000 each—around $84,000 total—and would provide “context” about curators’ viewpoints, according to NPR and the Atlantic. The letter criticizes NMAH director Anthea Hartig for describing history as “a prime tool of social justice,” alleges the museum legitimizes “illegal immigration and open borders,” and attacks exhibits on sex and gender; it also accuses outgoing Smithsonian secretary Lonnie G. Bunch III of “anti-white animus.” Merkley told NPR the signs are part of a broader pressure campaign following Trump’s 2025 executive order “Restoring Truth and Sanity to American History,” which directed the Smithsonian to remove “divisive” content and restore monuments removed since 2020.
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This story was covered in Museum Expansions, AI Book Carnage, and Power Plays