Trump Orders Smithsonian to Purge Race-Focused Exhibits, Ends DEI Programs

1 articles · Updated · USA TODAY · Jun 19

Trump issued executive orders directing the Smithsonian to remove what he calls “divisive, race-centered ideology” from exhibits and to shut down DEI programs across the federal government.
The Smithsonian order sets up a mechanism to review and reshape museum content, targeting presentations of slavery, racism and other parts of African American history that the administration says are ideological.
The move lands on Juneteenth, the federal holiday marking June 19, 1865, when Union troops reached Galveston, Texas, to enforce emancipation for some of the last enslaved people.
Critics argue the orders whitewash U.S. history and undercut efforts to address persistent racial disparities, including a 2022 median net worth of about $44,000 for Black households versus $284,000 for White households.