An environmental advocacy group said documents it obtained show public opposition to the Trump administration’s inquiry about negative American history at federally funded parks, museums and interpretive sites.
In an executive order earlier this year titled “Restoring Truth and Sanity to American History,” President Trump directed Interior Secretary Doug Burgum to ensure monuments, memorials, statues and markers “do not contain descriptions, depictions, or other content that inappropriately disparage Americans past or living.”
The federal government printed signs with QR codes this summer, asking the public to report negative signage.
In August, the Sierra Club obtained documents including 68 comments submitted at Bureau of Land Management (BLM) sites through a public records request.
A visitor to the Goose Island Campground in Utah wrote "Keep American history honest.” At Canyons of the Ancients National Monument in Colorado, a visitor said the exhibits were informative and abundant with artifacts. Other comments decried budget cuts and reported trails or bathrooms they felt weren’t being maintained properly.
“There was not one response that we saw that asked for a revision of negative history or of a removal of signage,” said Nihal Shrinath, an attorney for the Sierra Club.
Shrinath believes these public comments show the Trump Administration’s effort “backfired.” He said BLM staff also didn’t flag any signs that they thought needed to be reviewed by the administration, another requirement from the executive order.
The BLM did not respond to a request for comment about the records.
Reporting by the New York Times indicated staff at the National Park Service have identified signs for review, including exhibits about slavery and Native American history.
Public feedback submitted through National Park Service sites has not been released. In an email, the agency said it received “several substantive comments from across the country complimenting park programs or services, noting maintenance issues, or flagging potential inaccuracies or distortions of information out of context.”
This story was produced by the Mountain West News Bureau, a collaboration between KUNC, Wyoming Public Media, Nevada Public Radio, Boise State Public Radio in Idaho, KUNR in Nevada, KANW in New Mexico, Colorado Public Radio, KJZZ in Arizona and NPR, with additional support from affiliate newsrooms across the region. Funding for the Mountain West News Bureau is provided in part by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and Eric and Wendy Schmidt.
