On the eve of the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence, the Trump administration is rewriting history by wielding the tools of censorship and erasure.

At the National Park Service site honoring Charles Pickney, who wrote a draft of the Declaration of Independence, for example, references to the people enslaved at the location are being scrubbed. As another example, the administration has identified as problematic an exhibit about Benjamin Franklin’s scientific achievements because it also mentions Franklin’s ownership of enslaved people.

History and tradition make us aware of who we are and what we are becoming. Notably, America continued to reveal itself, as Jill Lepore has written in her prize-winning book, “These Truths: A History of the United States.”

Because historians debate American history by offering new facts or reinterpretations of old ones, new names enter the pantheon of American heroes. An older list of great Americans would include George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson and Abraham Lincoln. We now recognize Cesar Chavez, Frederick Douglass, W.E.B. Du Bois and Martin Luther King as prominent Americans. So, too, we now know of and respect the contributions of Abigail Adams, Susan B. Anthony, Clara Barton, Rachael Carson, Rosa Parks and Ida Tarbell.

These leaders exemplify an American spirit and connect us with our origins. However, the extensive list of American heroes and heroines, along with their flaws and accomplishments, may not be widely known except for historians’ commitment to their craft.

The Smithsonian Institution, often referred to as our nation’s attic because it holds our collective memories, is a particular target. President Donald Trump has issued an executive order requiring a review of its exhibits, and he has identified specific exhibits he does not like, most of which are exhibits about racial minorities and LGBTQ+ history.

Further, the administration wants the Smithsonian to downplay the evils of slavery and eliminate references to Trump’s two bills of impeachment. These actions are done in the name of restoring American greatness and silencing “corrosive ideology.”

Other executive orders are directed at investigating disfavored educational programs, such as those addressing diversity, equity and inclusion, to be replaced with “patriotic education” by reviving the discredited 1776 Project, which whitewashes the country’s founding by disregarding what historians have taught us about the flaws and accomplishments of America’s Founding Fathers.

The administration is not alone in restricting areas of critical inquiry. More than 30 states have passed or introduced anti-DEI and LGBTQ+ laws. Additionally, states have banned thousands of books, primarily based on false claims of obscenity for minors; inclusion of LGBTQ+ characters, or addressing of race, equity and social justice.

Conservatives complain about “woke” progressives. Although the term is used as a catch-all critique of liberalism, it has a precise definition that originated in the racial justice movements in the early to mid-1900s. According to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, a person is “woke” politically if that individual is educated about and conscious of racial equality and social justice.

Contesting history is part of the American political tradition. Politicians and pundits regularly frame their campaigns and opinions around their visions of the country and its history. Trump’s “Make America Great Again” is an example; so too are Lyndon Johnson’s “Great Society,” Ronald Regan’s “It’s Morning in America” and John F. Kennedy’s “New Frontier.”

The remedy for perceived complaints about wokeism is not government censorship but popular debate. Censorship occurs when the government takes sides in these debates by law or funding decisions. The framers of the Constitution were aware of the dangers of government censorship to the country’s democratic health. The First Amendment provides that “Congress shall make no law … abridging the freedom of speech. …” Whether or not the censorship being practiced by the federal and state governments is a constitutional violation, these acts strike at the heart of the Framers’ vision of the country as an ongoing debate over the nation’s values and how to achieve them.

History informs that debate, but only if the government does not censor what can be taught, written and presented in museums. History can teach us about the evolving understanding of equality, liberty, fairness and the public interest, but only if the government does not fire or threaten to fire the teachers, researchers and administrators who present views that elected officials do not like.

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