Erasing History: Trump’s Crusade Against the Truth

The latest salvo in Donald Trump’s war on truth is being waged in Philadelphia, where a battle over the President’s House enslavement memorial has reached new heights of absurdity. At its core, this dispute is about the right to tell an unvarnished truth about America’s founding – one that acknowledges the brutality and injustice inflicted upon enslaved Africans who lived and died on those grounds.

For decades, activists like Michael Coard, founder of Avenging the Ancestors Coalition (Atac), have fought to bring attention to the stories of those enslaved individuals. Their efforts culminated in a memorial that was finally opened to the public in 2010, only to be dismantled by the National Park Service at Trump’s behest. The removal of the panels and videos has been widely condemned as an attempt to whitewash history – literally.

As a city, Philadelphia is not just fighting for its own narrative; it’s also standing up against a broader effort to distort American history. This isn’t about “restoring truth” or “sanity,” as Trump would have you believe. It’s about rewriting the past to fit a sanitized version of America that has never existed.

Coard, inspired by the 2002 archaeological discovery of the enslavement quarters, said he’s grateful for the publicity generated by the dispute. But what’s striking is not just his optimism but also the community’s resilience in the face of federal aggression. Atac’s monthly Zoom meetings have grown to 400 participants, with many joining in-person protests and rallies. This coalition transcends racial and socioeconomic boundaries.

The Lest We Forget Museum of Slavery has seen an uptick in visitors since the dispute began, drawing people who want to learn about America’s complicated past. Meanwhile, Trump’s Department of Interior continues to downplay its role in the removals, instead focusing on the city’s “frivolous lawsuits” and jobless rates.

This deflection tactic falls flat against the determined efforts of Philadelphians. As they push back against federal overreach, they’re not just fighting for their own history; they’re fighting for America’s collective memory. In doing so, they’re forcing us all to confront a hard truth: that our country was founded on the backs of enslaved individuals who were brutally subjugated and erased from the narrative.

Recent developments at the US Supreme Court will likely influence how this saga unfolds – particularly in light of Trump’s executive order. The outcome will have far-reaching implications for our understanding of America’s past and present.

The truth about our country’s founding has never been more relevant than it is today. Alyssa Bigbee put it eloquently: “When something you feel passionate about is wrong, you stand up. You do what you can in whatever capacity that you can.” This call to action is one we’d do well to heed – not just for the sake of our collective memory but for the future of this nation itself.