Monday is Memorial Day, the day to honor and mourn those who have died while serving in the U.S. military. Memorial Day started in Charleston, South Carolina, on May 1, 1865, by newly freed slaves. These individuals honored Union soldiers who died fighting for their freedom and helped liberate them from slavery. While it is a day to remember history, the origin of the holiday to known by most and if the current administration has it’s way, it never will be.
Executive Order 14253, titled “Restoring Truth and Sanity to American History, signed March 27, 2025, calls for the removal of “divisive, race-centered ideology” at the Smithsonian Institution, and instructs the Interior secretary to revoke recent changes to landmarks and monuments if they’re found to “perpetuate a false reconstruction of American history.” This order includes provisions that specifically target the National Museum of African American History and Culture and raises concerns about exhibits and narratives that the current administration deems “divisive” or “race-centered”. How does the administration define “race-centered?” A component of the US census includes race. Is this part of a larger move to excise the horrific treatment of a group that was foundational to US history?
Africans were enslaved based on their knowledge. This wasn’t a random gathering of people. Skilled laborers from African countries were sought after for their expertise in various agricultural practices and other trades. The enslavement of Africans was fundamental for the development of the United States of America. The majority of construction was done by enslaved including the White House and the Capital. The enslaved brought critical skills, such as brewing alcohol. Nathan “Nearest” Green was the master distiller for Jack Daniels. This isn’t a history lesson, just a few examples. Why is this important? President Trump stated he defund schools that teach that America was built on the backs of slaves. He has directed his administration to dismantle the Department of Education, due to concerns about how American history is taught, including slavery. But wait, there’s more.
Current book bans in the US have targeted history books, especially those dealing with sensitive social issues and diverse perspectives. 72 % of the bans are from organized groups. One of the many objectives of Project 2025 is to radically change education, what is taught and how it is taught. Some of those “groups” are Moms for Liberty and the Heritage Foundation which is the group behind Project 2025.
During National Library Week 2025 (April 6-12), the American Library Association released data documenting attempts to censor books and materials in public, school, and academic libraries during 2024. The data shows that the majority of book censorship attempts are now originating from organized movements. Pressure groups and government entities that include elected officials, board members, and administrators initiated 72% of demands to censor books in school and public libraries.
Book Ban Data
The current president and supporters appear hell bent on a historical narrative of the United States to include only European Americans. Trump’s family immigrated to the US in 1885 after the civl war and 278 years after the US was settled in 1607. I was trying to find a thru line to rationalize 47’s historical ignorance, but I believe racism is the better description. A comedian described the US population as such; ” We have Native Americans, Immigrant Americans and the enslaved who were Surprised Americans.”
The “restoration of history” per the executive order is an intentional exclusion of events. It has to be for “Make America Great Again” to work. So when was this greatness? Women were not allowed to have credit cards until 1974, domestic violence was not a crime until 1994, and lynching was not a federal crime until 2022 after 100 years of effort. Filtered versions of history inhibit our ability to solve problems today. The current administration’s version of history would say, Adolph Hitler was a nice Austrian boy who baked German Chocolate Cakes. All of that would be contrary to The Diary of Anne Frank….oh, but that is a banned book that can become forgotten history.
There are all kinds of facts in US history that are filtered and downplayed. A few that come to mind, WWII’s interment of the Japanese, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt was paralyzed from the waist down due to polio, the Statue of Liberty was a gift from France that commemorated the end of slavery, the constitution is based partly on the Native American Iroquois Confederacy. Even the trivia like the famed Liberty Bell, seen as a symbol of freedom and the founding of the country, is from England and has a misspelling in the inscription. This week, consider edited history and what happens when you act on partial data.
Balancing on Unstable Surfaces 
Thank you for today’s post. You inspire me.
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