Judge Condemns DOJ Claim Trump Can Erase Slavery
A federal judge in Philadelphia sharply rebuked Justice Department lawyers Friday for asserting that the Trump administration can unilaterally decide what American history to display at National Park Service sites. Senior U.S. District Judge Cynthia Rufe, a George W. Bush appointee, called the government’s position “dangerous” and “horrifying” during a hearing over the abrupt removal of a slavery exhibit at the former President’s House on Independence Mall.
Trump’s executive order “restoring truth and sanity to American history” prompted workers this month to remove outdoor plaques, panels, and materials documenting the nine people enslaved at George and Martha Washington’s presidential mansion. The city of Philadelphia, which invested $1.5 million in the exhibit developed two decades ago, discovered the materials had been placed in a pickup truck and moved to storage without notice.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Gregory in den Berken argued the Park Service routinely changes exhibits and that “the government gets to choose the message it wants to convey.” Rufe immediately objected, stating the government cannot alter historical facts based on “the whims of someone in charge.” Michael Coard, an attorney for advocacy groups supporting the exhibit, characterized the administration’s legal argument as dictatorial, stating the government was attempting to exercise power that belongs to Congress, the judiciary, and the American people.
The exhibit preserved biographical details about the nine enslaved individuals—Austin, Paris, Hercules, Christopher Sheels, Richmond, Giles, Oney Judge, Moll, and Joe—whose stories had been newly uncovered. Now only their names remain engraved on a cement wall. City officials and legal advocates contended the Park Service does not have unlimited authority to interpret national history, while residents have left flowers and handmade signs at the site affirming “Slavery was real.”
Judge Rufe indicated she would rule quickly, citing expected visitor surges for the nation’s 250th anniversary commemorations. She instructed Justice Department lawyers to ensure no additional materials are disturbed and plans to visit both the storage area and the site before issuing her decision on restoring the exhibit.