Several Democrats have urged US Vice President J.D. Vance to stop the overhaul of Smithsonian under new Trump policy.
In March, President Donald Trump issued the “Restoring Truth And Sanity To American History” order. The order contained directives to remove “anti-American” content from the Smithsonian catalogue and restore various statues and works that have been removed from the organization’s public exhibitions since 2020. It must be noted that since the George Floyd protests in 2020, various city councils and museums in America removed confederate statues and symbols. This included Smithsonian as well, who removed 160 confederate statues in 2020 alone.
On Thursday, four U.S. House Representatives – all belonging to the Democratic Party – wrote an open letter to Vice President J. D. Vance, urging him to stop the process. The letter said: “We write to you as shared custodians of one of the nation’s crown jewels—and with great concern over its future. […] Today, [the Smithsonian] is the envy of cultural institutions across the planet—not because of ideological edicts or interference from politicians, but because of the world-renowned experts who independently curate the Smithsonian’s collections, programs, exhibits, and activities. It is this curatorial independence that is the hallmark of credible museums and cultural institutions.”
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The representatives also belonged to the Committee on House Administration which oversees the Smithsonian, including its 21 museums, 14 public libraries and the National Zoo. However, as a member of the board of regents, Vance holds the ultimate say in what happens with the institute. While Vance did not respond to the letter, his press release the next day supported Trump’s actions.
