NATIONAL PARKS SETS UP SIGNS ASKING VISITORS FOR INFORMATION ON ANY SIGNS THAT PAINTS AMERICAN HISTORY IN A BAD LIGHT
New signage is now appearing in national parks around the United States. The placards, which were put up in response to a directive from the Department of the Interior, request visitors' opinions on facts or exhibits that negatively portray American history and landscapes. By July 18, all parks nationwide must also finish auditing public-facing materials, including exhibitions, plaques, and visitor films, to check for any negative ideas.
In response to a staffing shortage that has hit national parks ahead of the busy summer season, the signs, which have already been installed in many national parks, include a QR code that allows visitors to report “any signs or information that are negative about either past or living Americans or that fail to emphasize the beauty, grandeur, and abundance of landscapes and other natural features.” Users can also report areas that require repair or services that require improvement.
Rachel Pawlitz, spokesperson for the NPS, told NPR, “This order reaffirms the NPS mission by emphasising the importance of accuracy in how we tell stories of American history. Our visitors come to national parks to celebrate the beauty, abundance, and grandeur of America's landscapes and extraordinary multicultural heritage. This allows them to personally connect with these special places, free of any partisan ideology.”
National Park Service (NPS) comptroller Jessica Bowron issued a directive to regional directors to post these signs, with a deadline of June 13 for completion. These measures come after President Donald Trump issued an executive order in March titled "Restoring Truth and Sanity to American History." The Organisation of American Historians characterises this vision as a “glorified narrative that downplays or removes portions of America’s history.” According to this order, federal facilities, including the Smithsonian, must revise interpretive materials to emphasise achievement and unity.
National parks are often associated with nature, but there are other factors at work as well. Over two-thirds of the 433 national park areas are devoted to conserving and understanding the history and culture of the country, according to the National Parks Conservation Association (NPCA). For instance, the former president's conservation efforts are said to have been inspired by North Dakota's Theodore Roosevelt National Park, which is well-known for its bison and untamed landscape. Based on this, park rangers provide insightful justifications of the site's historical significance, highlighting the effects of growth and conflicts with local Native populations.
Theresa Pierno, the president and CEO of the NPCA, and previous NPS directors are also concerned about the instruction. “The signs are asking people to contradict crucial scientific and historical facts that have been vetted for accuracy by experts at the National Park Service. These signs are the latest in a long line of disturbing administration efforts to rewrite American history and undermine the Park Service. Forcing rangers to post these signs is an outrage and shows deep contempt for their work to preserve and tell all American stories.”
For more than a century, rangers have brought American history to life, Pierno added. Whether the lessons are uplifting or sombre, this has long earned them the respect and admiration of the American people. According to the NPCA director, "Rangers should be able to talk about the history of slavery at Fort Monroe or the history of Japanese American detention at Amache without looking over their shoulders in terror." "Our nation will never grow from its faults if the darker periods of its past are erased."
