1. United States
2. Mass.
3. Letter

This executive order from the Trump administration targeting funding for programs at the Smithsonian Institution that supposedly promote "divisive narratives" and "improper ideology" is a blatant attempt to rewrite and whitewash American history. Reframing factual accounts of our nation's complicated past involving racism, marginalization, and injustice as mere "ideological indoctrination" is disingenuous and dangerous. Museums like the National Museum of African American History and Culture exist to educate the public on the often-overlooked struggles and achievements of oppressed groups - this is vital knowledge, not propaganda. Appointing individuals like JD Vance to purge these institutions of perspectives that conflict with a sanitized, jingoistic narrative is an authoritarian overreach that undermines the very purpose of museums as sites of learning and truth. Obfuscating harsh realities to promote a rose-tinted national myth does a disservice to all Americans. I urge a reconsideration of this misguided order in favor of fully funding and protecting the Smithsonian's invaluable educational mission.