\u201cThis Country cannot be WOKE, because WOKE IS BROKE,\u201d Trump added.<\/p>\n
The Organisation of American Historians (OAH) has expressed \u201cdeep concern and dismay\u201d at the White House\u2019s \u201cunprecedented\u201d request to review the Smithsonian\u2019s exhibits, adding that \u201cno president has the legitimate authority to impose such a review\u201d.<\/p>\n
The Smithsonian receives most of its budget from Congress but is independent of the government in decision-making.<\/p>\n
The OAH also said that \u201cit is particularly distressing to see this effort of historical censorship and sanitising tied to the 250th anniversary of the nation\u2019s founding\u201d.<\/p>\n
The Trump administration said it ordered the review of museums in advance of next year\u2019s milestone, which will mark 250 years since the signing of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776.<\/p>\n
It was not until decades later, on December 18, 1865, that the 13th Amendment to the US Constitution officially abolished chattel slavery nationwide<\/a>, although exceptions continued.<\/p>\n The National Museum of African American History and Culture, which was opened in 2016 with a ceremony led by then-President Barack Obama, is one of the museums the White House has included in its review.<\/p>\n According to the museum\u2019s website, visitors learn about the \u201crichness and diversity of the African American experience\u201d with exhibits ranging from a plantation cabin from South Carolina to Chuck Berry\u2019s red Cadillac convertible.<\/p>\n The freedom of expression organisation PEN America has also expressed alarm at the Trump administration\u2019s \u201csweeping review\u201d of Smithsonian exhibits.<\/p>\n \u201cThe administration\u2019s efforts to rewrite history are a betrayal of our democratic traditions and a deeply concerning effort to strip truth from the institutions that tell our national story,\u201d Hadar Harris, the managing director of PEN America\u2019s Washington, DC, office, said in a statement.<\/p>\n Trump has made threats to cut federal funding for top US educational institutions, citing pro-Palestinian protests against US ally Israel\u2019s war on Gaza<\/a>, transgender policies, climate initiatives and diversity, equity and inclusion programmes.<\/p>\n Last month, the government settled probes into Columbia University, which agreed to pay $221m<\/a>, and Brown University, which said it would pay $50m to the government. Both institutions also accepted certain government demands<\/a>, including how some topics are taught.<\/p>\n![\"a](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/12930167-1755647892.jpg\")
The National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington, DC, opened in 2016 [File:Will Oliver\/EPA]<\/p>\n