Scholars Divided Over Trump’s Scrutiny of Smithsonian Museums
“I think it’s very clear that he’s trying to tell a story of America that coincides with his political ambitions, his own conceptions of America as a white republic”
Trump is merely looking to take some of the woke nonsense out of certain exhibits, but critics are accusing him of trying to rewrite history.
The College Fix reports:
Trump admin’s scrutiny of Smithsonian exhibits has one scholar hopeful, others upset
The Trump administration’s scrutiny of Smithsonian exhibits has prompted criticism from a number of scholars over the past week, including a Princeton University professor who described it as part of a “white nationalist project.”
However, at least one scholar praised the president’s attention to the matter, saying “a woke, revisionist history” has taken over many museums.
On Thursday, the White House published a list of exhibits and intended exhibits in the Smithsonian’s museums that it believes inject leftist politics into American history.
One was a series by the National Museum of African American History and Culture about “whiteness” and “white dominant culture” in the U.S. The exhibit (pictured) described “the nuclear family,” “work ethic,” and “intellect” as “white qualities rooted in racism,” according to the White House.
In another example, the National Portrait Gallery had planned to display a “painting depicting a transgender Statue of Liberty” (pictured); however, the artist withdrew it.
Last week, the president also called for a review of the Smithsonian based on concerns about its exhibits pushing leftist ideologies
“Trump isn’t trying to ‘erase history,’ he’s looking to reverse a woke movement that has indeed rewritten the American story to highlight suffering rather than providing a balanced picture of our past,” Elizabeth Weiss, a professor emeritus of anthropology at San José State University, wrote Monday at the New York Post.
But others disagreed.
Princeton University Professor Eddie Glaude told MSNBC that Trump believes America is a “white republic.”
“I think it’s very clear that he’s trying to tell a story of America that coincides with his political ambitions, his own conceptions of America as a white republic,” Glaude said in the Sunday interview.
“So we can’t tell a story about our failings because those stories call into question our inherent goodness and our divine mission,” the history professor said. “He’s seeking a history that confirms his politics in so many ways, it’s a politics that’s rooted in a white nationalist project, and we need to call it for what it is.”
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Comments
Eddie Glaude – black grifter. Need I say more?
With history, there are a lot of details. But to simply tell the story, one should convey the principal events and broad trends and not get sidetracked with the minutia. My sense is that the Smithsonian, adhering to the in-vogue notion of inclusion, has erred with too much minutia rather than conveying the major events and trends and the supporting facts and documents. Among other things, DJT has truly impressed with his energy, innovation, and drive to get the 250th celebration right.
They have struggled to tell the native american version of history for decades. They descendents of the various different tribal cultures can’t come to agreement on what they want to see in museums.
The problem with scholars is that many of them aren’t scholarly at all.