Executive Overreach and The Serpents Egg

1977 film by legendary Swedish filmmaker Ingmar Bergman

     

     On August 12th, 2025, the White House sent this letter to the Honorable Lonnie G. Bunch III, Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution regarding an Executive Order to Review its Exhibitions and Materials. This Executive Review is to make sure that these Institutions focus on “Americanism” in order to “Restore Truth and Sanity to American History.” Its aim is to “ensure alignment with the President’s directive to celebrate American exceptionalism, remove divisive or partisan narratives, and restore confidence in our shared cultural institutions.” This review will assess various aspects of the Smithsonian's operations such as its public-facing content (in-person exhibitions and online materials), curatorial processes and exhibition planning, draft plans for future shows, how collections are used to highlight American achievements, the development of narrative standards for exhibitions. Elaborating on this Executive Order, President Trump shared the below August 19th post on Truth Social regarding this federal directive:

     First and foremost, everything discussed at the Smithsonian Institute is not how horrible the country is, how bad slavery was, and how unaccomplished the downtrodden have been. Anyone who has visited a Smithsonian site knows that this statement is a boldfaced lie. There is a tremendous amount of success, brightness and future aspirations shown in numerous in-person exhibitions and online materials. To that point, the National Museum of African American History and Culture literally have a beautifully vibrant exhibition on Afrofuturism. It is worth noting that the term "WOKE" was first created by Black folks in 1930s and 1960s Protest Songs and recently popularized in Erykah Badu's song Master Teacher. This idea describes an awareness of racism, discrimination, prejudice and their harmful results. To be WOKE means that you possess the knowledge to identify and allude the pitfalls and traps of racism, discrimination, and prejudice. Let's be clear, whenever President Trump or any of his MAGA sympathizers dismiss, ridicule, or attack the idea of being WOKE, they are simultaneously denying that racism, discrimination, and prejudice exist against Black people. The statement, "This Country cannot be WOKE" means the U.S. cannot acknowledge that racism, discrimination, and prejudice exist against Black people because that is the perspective of poor Black people. This is the root of the attacks we have seen on Affirmative Action, DEI, Obamacare, Obama Phones, Reparations, and other initiatives impacting Black people. This is also what's behind the stereotypical claims to pathologize Black people as coming from sh*thole countries, eating dogs and cats, having toxic culture, playing the victim, playing the race card, being unmerited DEI hires, being reverse racists, poor, lazy, on welfare, looking for handouts, criminals, uneducated, and killing each other. 

  According to the White House, the initial Phase I to review the Smithsonian Institute's exhibitions and materials will focus on the following eight museums listed below. Additional museums will be reviewed in Phase II.

• National Museum of American History
• National Museum of Natural History
• National Museum of African American History and Culture
• National Museum of the American Indian
• National Air and Space Museum
• Smithsonian American Art Museum
• National Portrait Gallery
• Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden

     Who is doing the reviewing? White House appointees/attorneys. Not historians, scholars, curators, or subject-area experts. This would be equivalent to someone who only has a background in sports entertainment serving as the U.S. Secretary of Education. In that position to lead the Department of Education, this person is responsible for reviewing and developing national education policies, overseeing federal education programs, supporting teachers, and ensuring equal access to quality education for all students. Whether it's former World Wrestling Entertainment executive Linda McMahon as the Secretary of Education, former Fox News Host Pete Hegseth as the Secretary of Defense, or Lee Zeldin as Administrator of the EPA with no background in environmental issues, inexperienced federal appointments like this have become the norm of the Trump Administration. Some have argued that this is not problematic. Yet these are the same people who would have a problem with someone who has no medical background reviewing their medical records and developing a health recovery plan for them or a family member. Like it or not, these appointees and others are responsible for developing a health recovery plan for America.

Submission Timeline

Below is the scheduled compliance timeline highlighted in this letter to the Smithsonian Institute.

Within 30 days of receipt of this letter, we anticipate:

• Each museum to submit all requested materials outlined in the first four bullet points above, including current exhibition descriptions, draft plans for upcoming shows, America 250 programming materials, and internal guidelines used in exhibition development.
• Review of America 250 exhibition and program planning and connect with curators and staff about their specific proposals.
• A staff liaison from each museum will be designated to serve as the primary point of contact throughout the review process.
• Our team will begin on-site observational visits, conducting walkthroughs of current exhibitions to document themes, visitor experience, and visual messaging.

Within 75 days:

• Museums are asked to submit the remaining requested documentation (items 5 through 10), including promotional literature, grant data, educational materials, and guided tour content.

• Our team will begin scheduling and conducting voluntary interviews with curators and senior staff. These conversations will help us better understand each museum’s goals and the broader curatorial vision guiding the institution.
• Each museum should finalize and submit its updated plan to commemorate America’s 250th anniversary and ensure coordination with the White House Salute to America 250 Task Force to align messaging and public engagement.

Within 120 days:

• Museums should begin implementing content corrections where necessary, replacing divisive or ideologically driven language with unifying, historically accurate, and constructive descriptions across placards, wall didactics, digital displays, and other public-facing materials.

The White House also stated, "If all benchmarks are met on schedule, we anticipate completing our review and preparing a final report for your review in early 2026. This report will include museum-specific assessments, institutional trends, and constructive recommendations for future exhibition strategy." 

Executive Branch Overreach

     President Trump is the only President in American history to call for a review of the Smithsonian Institution. According to the Organization of American Historians (OAH) who have openly condemned this order, the Smithsonian Institution was “established by Congress in 1846 as a unique and independent agency" and "is not, and has never been, under the authority of the Executive Branch." The OAH went on to state that the Smithsonian "is an independent statutory agency, led by the Secretary and governed by a bipartisan Board of Regents as established by law." In a statement by American Association for State and Local History (AASLH) it shared, "The administration’s directive ignores our field’s scholarship and the will of the American people, who have repeatedly said they want to explore the nation's history in all of its depth and complexity. The directive removes crucial context that audiences need for a fuller understanding of the past and its relevance to today. It is also an affront to the public’s right to think for itself." As congressionally chartered and independent, the Smithsonian Institute is not part of the U.S. government's Executive Branch. Thus, the White House, and any President, does not have the authority to direct the Smithsonian's internal operations, museum exhibits, or interpretive content.

     What consequence do these institutions face for not following this directive as a part ofExecutive Order 14253? Potential funding restrictions like we have seen educational institutions face via Executive Order 14238, titled "Continuing the Reduction of the Federal Bureaucracy." The Center for American Progress (CAP), an independent non-partisan policy institute has tracked how the White House's Executive Orders have impacted states and higher learning institutions by Mapping Federal Funding Cuts. What this order also does is set a national standard of censorship and suppression of history. The direction to remove improper ideology that does not show allegiance to the traditions, institutions, and ideals of the United States, as defined by federal government appointees, sets the stage for the rewriting of history. This also undermines the trust in institutions, especially by historians, scholars, researchers, documentarians, curators, subject-area experts, and educators who have researched, documented and teach non-revisionist history. Lastly, this attack on scholarship and academic exploration instills fear in those to not present counter narratives that will conflict with the government's review standards, or face repercussions -which may be severe. What is also important to consider is how this federal overreach sets a precedence on a state, regional, and local level. 

How does this affect everyday people? 

     The Smithsonian Institution is a national standard of excellence in museum collections, scholarship, education, and scientific exploration. What happens on the national level informs institutions on a regional and local level. This is where they receive their marching orders, especially with the added pressure of losing federal funding. In the area of WNY (Western New York) I have seen this effecting a number of institutions. As a host for the show What's Next? on BTPM (Buffalo Toronto Public Media) and which receives funding from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, an entity that was recently defunded by the U.S. government and is shutting down. As an Adjunct Professor at Niagara University, I have also watched extreme cuts to their programs and staff due to the changes within the federal government. Libraries, museums, educational institutions, and regional/local policy makers are all feeling the pressure to comply with the federal government's expectations, which are often not under the legal jurisdiction of the U.S. government's Executive Branch. I have also seen local institutions and business censor how they use social media for fear of losing customers, resources, and funding if they post/share content that does not align with the federal government. What do you call a far-right, authoritarian nationalist political ideology characterized by dictatorial leadership, control and standardization imposed by a central authority, and suppression of opposition? FACISM. While some have hesitated to call it what it is, the elements and tendencies of the current Administration are evidenced in past fascist governments such as Italy and Germany. In fact, the 1977 film The Serpent's Egg by legendary Swedish filmmaker Ingmar Bergman, is an excellent example of how a fascist society developed in 1920s Berlin, Germany. Check out the trailer below.

What can we do about it? 

     All marginalized people, based upon our race, gender, socioeconomic status, age, worldview, etc. have always been negatively impacted in various ways by racist, sexist, ageist, elitist. etc. policies that have set inequitable societal standards. These policies and standards have been primarily established and upheld by WASP men; White Anglo-Saxon Protestant men. Because of this, there have always existed resistance movements in every facet of society. Whether those were movements related to classism, racism, gender inequity, labor, etc., people have always strived to fight fascism. This means that there is evidence of where, when, what, and how to fight! As educators, we fought, and fight, by establishing our own institutions to teach the children how to think critically and creatively. This enabled us, and enables them, to intelligently respond to misinformation and disinformation designed to rewrite history. As one of many community members who helped establish our Niagara Falls Underground Railroad Heritage Center we made it our mission to reveal authentic stories of Underground Railroad freedom seekers and abolitionists in Niagara Falls that inspire visitors to recognize modern injustices that stem from slavery and take action toward an equitable society. These means that we center the stories and agency of people of African descent and do not promote a white savior narrative. We have been firm on this, even in the face of turning down major funders whose financial support hinged upon us changing that mission and our exhibits. The same fearless stances of integrity must be made today. We also must be willing to condemn the actions of those who seek to erase our stories. So along with education must come advocacy. In April of this year at our Permanant Forum on People of African Descent (PFPAD) at the United Nations, I had an opportunity to speak against the National Parks Services temporarily removing an image/content of Harriet Tubman from their website. You can read my official statement here. As adults, parents, guardians, and caretakers, it is important for children to see us courageously challenge these policies and standards. We can also challenge these policies and standards with our dollars. I am intentional about striving to support businesses, especially locally, that are also willing to condemn the actions of those who seek to erase our stories, and support those of us who are invested in preserving those stories. Supporting local businesses like this and simultaneously boycotting businesses that support fascist policies and standards also works as important advocacy tools. The nationwide boycott of Target for rolling back their DEI initiatives resulted in decreased sales, their stock plummeting and a $12.4 billion loss in market capitalization. These are just a couple of examples that have been used by everyday people in the past and present to challenge the status quo.  

      The Executive Overreach that we are seeing with the current Administration is only going to get worse before it gets any better. This political pressure from the federal government creates pressure on state, regional, and local governments where we all live. And this will continue to affect our local institutions, law enforcement, and businesses. We are not powerless though. Power belongs to the people and that power is the truth. How could we show forth and prove this power, and that we are all wise and righteous? We amplify that power through critical thinking, courage, cooperative economics and collective work and responsibility. For the world to be better, we must commit ourselves to being better in the face of this tyranny, fanaticism, and patriotism. 

Peace,

Saladin