The city of Philadelphia is engaged in a legal battle with the Trump administration over a slavery exhibit at Independence National Historic Park. The exhibit, which has been in place for over a decade, honors the lives of nine men and women enslaved by George Washington in one of the homes he resided in while president.

The Dispute

The Trump administration has targeted the site for change as part of its effort to remove content in cultural institutions that ‘inappropriately disparage Americans past or living.’ The Department of Interior proposed a new exhibit focusing less on slavery than the original exhibit.

The City of Philadelphia sued to stop the federal government from changing the exhibit and initially won in court. However, the Trump administration appealed, and the restoration of the original exhibit was halted. A panel of three judges recently sided with the Department of Interior, reversing a ruling the city won in February.

Community Reaction

Local residents and guides are determined to keep the history of slavery alive. Mijuel Johnson, a local guide, said, ‘Regardless of what the new panels say, they’re not the original panels that were made for this site. And they’re not necessary.’ Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle Parker pledged to ‘pursue every legal action possible’ to reverse the decision.

Civil rights activist and attorney Michael Coard argued, ‘Every single advance that Black people have gotten in this country since the birth of American slavery in 1619 came with struggle.’ Coard noted that the controversy has brought more attention to the exhibit, saying, ‘I have to thank President Trump… Because of the controversy, the lesser-known slavery exhibit had received more PR and street cred than we could have ever paid for.’

Original reporting: El Paso News (HLL/CB) — read the source article.