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The Trump administration has escalated its efforts to erase Black history from public institutions, targeting museums, libraries, and digital archives that have long preserved the truth of America’s past.

Further, President Donald Trump’s executive orders have dismantled federal diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) efforts while specifically attacking the

Now, Trump is cutting off funding to the only plantation museum in the country solely dedicated to telling the story of slavery and honoring the lives of enslaved people.

The funds cultural and historical institutions nationwide and recently terminated two grants awarded to the Whitney Plantation. 

One of the grants—already received—supported general programming. The other, worth nearly $55,000, was intended to fund an exhibit on resistance to slavery, an effort three years in the making that was set to open in 2026. Without the funding, the project may never be completed.

The cuts followed a March executive order by Trump directing IMLS to “eliminate all non-statutorily required activities and functions.” 

The Department of Government Efficiency (Doge) placed most of the agency’s employees on administrative leave, which has been responsible for sweeping cuts across the federal government. 

In a letter to grantees, IMLS Acting Director Keith Sonderling wrote that the Whitney grant “no longer serves the interest of the United States and the IMLS program.”

Museums and libraries across the country now face uncertainty over promised IMLS support. The Whitney, along with its partners at the University of New Orleans and the research project Freedom on the Move, has until May 12 to appeal the termination.’

At the same time, federal web pages featuring Harriet Tubman, Native American code talkers, U.S. Army Maj. Gen. Charles Calvin Rogers and other notable Black and Indigenous figures were either deleted or stripped of key historical content. Following public outcry, some of the pages were restored—but many fear the damage has already been done.

In a letter to Vice President J.D. Vance, Democrats on the House Administration Committee, which oversees the Smithsonian Institution, condemned the administration’s actions.

“This flagrant attempt to erase Black history is unacceptable and must be stopped,” wrote Reps. Joseph Morelle of New York, Terri Sewell of Alabama, and Norma Torres of California. “The attempt to paper over elements of American history is both cowardly and unpatriotic.”

The museum, one of the most visited in the country, recently experienced a leadership change. Kevin Young, a poet and scholar of African American history, stepped down as director in early April after a leave of absence. Shanita Beckett, previously head of operations, is serving as interim director.

Meanwhile, when the Whitney Plantation opened in 2014, it stood as a rare counter to the sanitized version of history often presented at plantation sites. Located on a former sugar, indigo, and rice plantation that operated from 1752 to 1975, the site preserves over a dozen historic structures, many of which are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Unlike other plantations used for weddings or tourist events, the Whitney has focused exclusively on the truths of slavery.

Rep. Terri Sewell didn’t mince words: “We cannot let this revisionist agenda take hold. Black history is American history — and we will fight to preserve it.”