See a Philadelphia woman’s emotional reaction to the removal of slavery exhibits
Philadelphians emotional over removal of federal exhibit memorializing people enslaved by George Washington.
BOSTON – A federal judge has ordered the Trump administration to reinstall exhibits and signage on topics such as slavery and climate change that it removed from parks and monuments across the country because they “do not align with the Trump administration’s preferred narrative.”
U.S. District Judge Angel Kelly in Boston issued a preliminary injunction on June 12, at the request of groups representing park conservationists, historians, and scientists, alleging that the Interior Department is waging a “sustained campaign to erase history and undermine science.”
Removing these signs “not only undermines the integrity of our national parks, but also sets a dangerous precedent for censorship and sanitization,” Kelly said.
Kerry said he has ordered the government to restore the sign within 21 days “to properly honor America’s outstanding achievements in time for the 250th anniversary.”
Lawyers for the plaintiffs, the National Park Conservation Association, the American State and Local History Association, and four other organizations did not respond to requests for comment, nor did an Interior Department spokeswoman.
President Donald Trump signed an executive order in March 2025 targeting what he calls a “revisionist movement” that depicts the United States as “inherently racist, sexist, oppressive, or otherwise irredeemably flawed.”
President Trump’s order directs the Interior Department to make changes to parks, monuments and memorials to address what the White House says has occurred in recent years, a “false historical revision.”
Plaintiffs argued that the Interior Department’s removal of signs and exhibits from parks violates Congressional orders governing how more than 430 national parks are managed, and that it employs an illegal policy that lacks a reasonable explanation as to why various signs and exhibits must be removed.
An Interior Department spokeswoman previously said the policy requires the nation’s parks to “completely and accurately tell America’s history.”
Nate Raymond reports in Boston and David Thomas reports in Chicago. Editing: Mark Porter and Tom Hogue
