Philly Don’t Play: Philadelphia Sues Over ‘Arbitrary & Capricious’ Removal Of Slavery Exhibits From President’s House Site
Philadelphia isn’t backing down and taking its fight over the removal of slavery exhibits straight to federal court.
On Thursday, the city sued the Department of the Interior and the acting director of the National Park Service, accusing officials of dismantling slavery exhibits in The President’s House site inside Independence National Historical Park.
According to The Philadelphia Inquirer, the site serves as a memorial to the nine people George Washington enslaved there during the founding of the United States, but according to Trump’s regime, it “inappropriately disparages” America.
Panels Removed From President’s House Site In Philadelphia
According to The Philadelphia Inquirer, National Park Service workers removed the exhibits in question on Thursday afternoon. According to an Independence Park employee, around 3 p.m., his supervisor instructed him to take down all the displays earlier that day.
Allegedly, three other individuals joined the employee to help remove the panels. The Philadelphia Inquirer states that the final display was removed at 4:30 p.m.
The exhibits were then loaded into the back of a white Park Service pickup truck.
Exhibits Included Slavery Focused Panels, The Inquirer Reports
The Philadelphia Inquirer states the exhibits were removed one by one. Panels included titles such as “Life Under Slavery” and “The Dirty Business of Slavery.”
Workers used tools such as wrenches and crowbars to dismantle the displays.
The employee repeatedly stated, “I’m just following my orders.”
The employee did not confirm whether the removals were tied to President Donald Trump’s executive order.
In the Philadelphia Inquirer, Jali Wicker, 74, stopped to record the scene as workers unscrewed bolts from the brick walls. Wicker said the sight overwhelmed and disturbed him.
“You can try to erase our history, but we’re still going to survive,” Wicker said. “History has shown that, slavery has shown that. … And you want to go back?”
Attorney Michael Coard, who leads the Avenging the Ancestors Coalition, called the removal of the displays an “abomination.”
“It’s a disgrace, and that’s an understatement,” Coard said, in the Philadelphia Inquirer.
Jack Williams, 47, shouted at workers as the panels were loaded into a Park Service truck.
“It’s absolutely sickening,” Williams said, in the Philadelphia Inquirer. Williams urged federal employees not to comply with the order, calling the removals “whitewashing history.”
Community organizer Mijuel Johnson said the action was “outrageous.”
“Our history will be taught. It’ll be taught as it should be, warts and all,” Johnson said, in the Philadelphia Inquirer.
Exhibits Faced Months Of Uncertainty After Trump’s Order
The displays had been in limbo for months after the Department of the Interior signaled it would review and potentially remove certain historical panels.
Trump and Interior Secretary Doug Burgum ordered national park content that “inappropriately disparages” the United States to be reviewed and potentially removed.
More than a dozen slavery related displays were flagged for review, with the President’s House site drawing particular scrutiny: 13 items across six exhibits were initially flagged at the President’s House site.
Everything was removed on Thursday.
The removed material included parts of exhibits titled
- “Life Under Slavery,”
- “History Lost & Found,”
- “The Executive Branch,”
- “The Dirty Business of Slavery,”
- “The House and the People Who Worked & Lived In It,”
and an illustration featuring the words “An Act respecting fugitives from Justice.”
City Asks Federal Judge To Restore Exhibit Panels
According to NBC News, the city of Philadelphia sued the Department of the Interior and the acting director of the National Park Service on Thursday over the removal of slavery related exhibits.
The lawsuit was filed in federal court and seeks a preliminary injunction to restore the exhibits at the President’s House site.
The lawsuit says “the National Park Service has removed artwork and informational displays at the President’s House site referencing slavery, presumably pursuant to the mandate” of Trump’s executive order signed in March.
NBC News states that the city said it received no notice about the change. The lawsuit calls the removal “arbitrary and capricious.”
“Defendants have provided no explanation at all for their removal of the historical, educational displays at the President’s House site, let alone a reasoned one,” the lawsuit says, in NBC News.
Philadelphia City Council President Kenyatta Johnson criticized the removal in a statement.
“Removing the exhibits is an effort to whitewash American history,” Johnson said, according to NBC News. “History cannot be erased simply because it is uncomfortable. Removing items from the President’s House merely changes the landscape, not the historical record.”
White House Defends Executive Order On Public History
White House spokesman Davis Ingle said Trump “continues to fulfill his promise to restore truth and common sense to the United States and its institutions.”
“President Trump is ensuring that we are honoring the fullness of the American story instead of distorting it in the name of left wing ideology,” Ingle said, in NBC News.
A spokesperson for the Department of the Interior said federal agencies are reviewing interpretive materials to ensure “accuracy, honesty, and alignment with shared national values.”
The spokesperson said the National Park Service is taking “appropriate action” under the executive order.
For now, the panels are down, and the lawsuit is moving forward.
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