Seventy-one congressional Democrats are calling for an investigation into the impact of President Trump’s March executive order targeting so-called “improper, divisive, or anti-American ideology” in the Smithsonian Institution.
In a May 1 letter addressed to the Smithsonian Inspector General, Nicole Angarella, lawmakers from districts across the United States charged that Trump’s executive order, which directs the Vice President to lead a purge of “race-centered ideology,” jeopardizes the institution’s independence as established by Congress in 1846.
The appeal is signed by some of the most recognizable names in progressive congressional politics, led by “squad” member US Representative Ayanna Pressley, representing Massachusetts’s 7th District, and the co-chair of the nascent Congressional Museum Caucus, US Representative Paul Tonko of New York’s 20th District.
Representatives including Maxwell Frost of Florida, Ilhan Omar of Minnesota, and Rashida Tlaib of Michigan were among the scores of Democrats who endorsed the letter, calling for Angarella to investigate how the executive order will affect the Smithsonian’s “operational integrity as a beacon of history and culture” and produce a thorough report on how it will preserve its mission.
The letter also requests documentation of artifacts deaccessioned as part of the mandate and asks the official to create a plan to “prevent the destruction or sale of cultural and historical artifacts.” Last month, the Smithsonian Institution denied reports that it was returning exhibition items related to segregation back to their owners.
Tonko and Pressley’s letter cautioned that the funding conditions stipulated in the executive order, including withholding resources for “exhibits or programs that degrade shared American values,” would allow right-wing ideology to corrode the Smithsonian’s capacity to document US history and culture.
“Since coming into office, Donald Trump’s attacks are anti-Blackness on steroids — and this is a blatant attempt to whitewash American history,” Representative Pressley’s press secretary told Hyperallergic in an email. Pressley’s office told Hyperallergic that the congresswoman demanded an investigation because “that which gets measured gets done.”
Last month, Pressley delivered an impassioned address on the House floor condemning Trump’s executive order, proclaiming, “Black history is American history.”
“I want every single person – certainly every single child – who calls this nation home to walk into our Smithsonian museums, including our beautiful Blacksonian, and see our collective history, accurate history, on display,” Pressley told the House.
The Smithsonian Board of Regents appointed Angarella Inspector General, a position responsible for conducting audits and investigations within the Smithsonian, last May. She reports directly to the Board of Regents, which now includes Vice President JD Vance and conservative Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts. The letter’s signatories argue Angarella is obligated to investigate the executive order’s impact, citing a 1978 act that established independent oversight bodies at federal agencies and the Smithsonian.
Though created by Congress, the Smithsonian is not a government agency like the National Endowment for the Arts. It operates as a “trust instrumentality” of the federal government, receiving 62% of its funding from congressional appropriations.
In a statement to Hyperallergic, Representatives Tonko and Pressley said the Smithsonian confirmed receipt of the letter. Tonko added that he and his colleagues would “move forward in discussions with Smithsonian leadership.” His office declined to provide additional information on what those conversations will entail.
The Smithsonian has not responded to multiple requests to comment.
Tonko, who co-chairs Congress’s two-month-old Museum Caucus with Ohio Republican Mike Turner, told Hyperallergic in an email that he was alarmed by Trump’s executive action, characterizing it as an attack on the Smithsonian’s “core mandate to grow the knowledge of its millions of visitors.”
The recent letter’s signatories added that it was ironic and “self-defeating” that the institution overseeing the National Museum of the American Latino and the National Museum of African American History and Culture — which were created with bipartisan support — now have to adhere to race-based content bans.
“Robust Congressional and internal oversight is critical to ensure that the Smithsonian can continue to fulfill its essential mission,” Tonko told Hyperallergic. “I hope this Inspector General investigation will help make certain that the implementation of this [executive] order does not compromise that mission.”