{"id":3967,"date":"2026-07-22T13:42:39","date_gmt":"2026-07-22T13:42:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/crosscountrymovingteams.com\/?p=3967"},"modified":"2026-07-22T13:42:39","modified_gmt":"2026-07-22T13:42:39","slug":"smithsonian-director-derides-a-white-house-report-branding-the-museum-as-woke","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/crosscountrymovingteams.com\/?p=3967","title":{"rendered":"Smithsonian director derides a White House report branding the museum as \u2018woke\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"<div>\n<p>The testimony from Anthea M. Hartig came as President Donald Trump has engaged in a broad national effort to reshape the stories of America told by cultural institutions controlled or influenced by the federal government and, in particular, to purge diversity, equity and inclusion elements from those narratives. Many historians are alarmed by the revisionism.<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/crosscountrymovingteams.com\/?p=3965\">Trump\u2019s third tariff tantrum piles more dizzying distractions on top of ever-spiraling failures<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u201cAs we continue to fact check the report, we unwaveringly attest that it does not fairly or accurately characterize the full body of work at the museum,\u201d Hartig told a House Oversight subcommittee. \u201cThere is always room for improvement. But I also know the beauty and the inspiration and the expertise that lies in our collections, our exhibits, and our programming.\u201d<\/p>\n<div>\n<div>\n<div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>Coinciding with the\u00a0250th anniversary\u00a0of American independence, the White House Domestic Policy Council released a report on July Fourth arguing that the museum, a centerpiece of the sprawling Smithsonian complex on the National Mall, doesn\u2019t tell history \u201cin a way that is inspiring, unifying, and worthy of our great republic.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Republicans on the panel reiterated some of those concerns on Tuesday.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIn the museum\u2019s current telling, history is just an ongoing power struggle between oppressors and the oppressed,\u201d said Rep. Tim Burchett, R-Tenn. \u201cThe report makes clear that the museum\u2019s woke exhibits and materials reflect a broader vision held by the museum leadership.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Hartig, the first woman to serve as director of the National Museum of American History, said\u00a0the institution\u00a0\u201cdoes not take sides in America\u2019s political debates.\u201d She described the museum\u2019s presentation of the nation\u2019s story as an evolution intended to add voices, not erase history as detractors sometimes argue.<\/p>\n<div>\n<div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>\u201cWhen historians talk about reframing a traditional narrative, we don\u2019t mean erasing it,\u201d she said. \u201cWe mean adding the evidence, the voices, the objects, that earlier tellings left out, so that more Americans can see themselves reflected in the national story.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The White House report argued that the museum \u201chas refused to celebrate the Nation and its history.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/crosscountrymovingteams.com\/?p=3963\">We got California to intervene about OpenAI\u2019s corporate switch from nonprofit status. It\u2019s time for the SEC to come to the table<\/a><\/p>\n<div>\n<div>\n<div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>\u201cIt has not created any exhibit dedicated to presenting a general narrative of American history or telling the story of any of our Founding Fathers, the Second Continental Congress, the Declaration of Independence, the American Revolutionary War, or the achievement of independence and the establishment of the constitutional rule of law,\u201d the report said.<\/p>\n<div>\n<div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>But the museum opened an exhibit in May dubbed \u201cIn Pursuit of Life, Liberty and Happiness\u201d that displays 250 objects\u00a0throughout the building\u00a0to celebrate America\u2019s 250th anniversary. The artifacts include the desk used by Thomas Jefferson to draft the Declaration of Independence, a Revolutionary War-era gunboat and the Star Spangled Banner.<\/p>\n<div>\n<div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>Some Republicans on the panel on Tuesday acknowledged that the museum displays important material related to the anniversary but argued it was challenging to navigate. Rep. Michael Cloud, R-Texas, said he expected references to the Declaration of Independence to be more prominent during a recent visit.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019m not saying it\u2019s not there, but it\u2019s hard to find,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p>Hartig faced particular scrutiny from Republicans over an exhibit entitled \u201cGirlhood (It\u2019s Complicated),\u201d which included a diary from a 13-year old exploring issues including gender identity. The museum director said the exhibit, which ran from 2020 through 2023, included a label making clear it was not designed for children.<\/p>\n<p>Hartig\u2019s future as the museum\u2019s director hung over the hearing. Trump last year said he was firing the longtime leader of the National Portrait Gallery, another Smithsonian museum that, like the National Museum of American History, operates independently of the executive branch. The National Portrait Gallery\u2019s director, Kim Sajet, nonetheless stepped down from the museum in the face of the White House pressure.<\/p>\n<div>\n<div>\n<div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>At one point, Burchett asked Hartig why she should continue in her job. She responded simply that overseeing the museum is \u201cthe honor of my career.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/crosscountrymovingteams.com\/?p=3961\">Exclusive: Arrakis, betting AI\u2019s biggest payoff is in industrial sectors not office work, emerges from stealth with $38 million in venture funding<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Anthea Hartig rejected a White House report accusing the Smithsonian of \u201cideological capture\u201d and anti\u2011American bias.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3966,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[79],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3967","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-white-house"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.7 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Smithsonian director derides a White House report branding the museum as \u2018woke\u2019 - 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