U.S. President Donald Trump warned that he would take legal and financial action against the Smithsonian Institution, the world's largest museum complex, because its exhibitions are biased towards a negative historical perspective that claims 'America is terrible and slavery was bad.' The 'culture war' surrounding American identity appears to be extending beyond academia to national museums.
On the 19th (local time), President Trump stated on his social media platform 'Truth Social' that he instructed his lawyers to examine the Smithsonian museums and to initiate the same process that had been conducted at universities. This is interpreted as meaning he intends to apply the measures that previously pressured Harvard and Columbia University through lawsuits and reductions in federal funding to the Smithsonian.
This action comes as the Trump administration has recently begun an unprecedented and extensive investigation into the Smithsonian. The White House stated in a letter sent last week to Lonnie Bunch, the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution, that 'this investigation is intended to ensure compliance with the President's directive to honor American exceptionalism, eliminate divisive or partisan narratives, and restore trust in shared cultural institutions.'
The White House is currently demanding digital copies of all signage and labels currently on display, as well as internal emails and memos, for the investigation. Earlier, President Trump signed an executive order to halt government spending on exhibitions that do not align with the administration's agenda, appointing his former lawyer Lindsey Halligan to root out 'inappropriate ideologies' within the Smithsonian.
President Trump believes that the Smithsonian has been swayed by the progressive camp's 'political correctness (WOKE)' and the slogans of 'diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI).' He argued on Truth Social that 'the Smithsonian has gone out of control,' stating, 'there, only discussions of how terrible our country is, how bad slavery was, and how powerless the oppressed are take place. There is nothing about success, glory, or the future.'
The investigation includes key institutions such as the National Museum of American History (NMAH), National Museum of Natural History (NMNH), and the National Museum of African American History and Culture (NMAAHC). Among them, the Museum of American History recently faced controversy after deleting explanatory panels related to the two impeachment cases against President Trump and then decided to restore them, leading to friction with the administration.
The Smithsonian has stated that it began its own review in June, emphasizing that it is 'dedicated to the unbiased presentation of facts and history.' However, experts point out that the White House's demands are practically 'impossible tasks.' Janet Mastin, a museum ethics expert, criticized, 'No one can provide such vast material in such a short time. It's a setup to make the Smithsonian fail.'
On the other hand, conservative factions argue that the Smithsonian has brought this situation upon itself. Fox News columnist Liz Peek claimed, 'The central theme of the Smithsonian has become racism,' asserting that 'taxpayers are funding an institution that teaches people to despise America.' He noted that while the number of visitors to the Smithsonian plummeted from 40 million in 2000 to 16.8 million last year, federal budget support has increased more than threefold from $350 million to $1.09 billion.
This incident is seen as a continuation of the 'culture war' that President Trump has been waging against the Washington cultural scene since he took office, including replacing board members of the Kennedy Center with his close associates. The ideological divide over how to remember and teach American history is expected to intensify.