War on History Education

War on History Education

U.S. Department of Education, AFPI, TPUSA, Hillsdale College, and Over 40 National and State Organizations Launch America 250 Civics Coalition
U.S. Department of Education, AFPI, TPUSA, Hillsdale College, and Over 40 National and State Organizations Launch America 250 Civics Coalition
The language in this Civics initiative and the highlighted organizations says much about the Administrations efforts to promote a specific public memory of the American Revolution
U.S. Department of Education (the Department), alongside the America First Policy Institute (AFPI), Turning Point USA, Hillsdale College
American First Policy Institute Greg Sindelar.
Turning Point Education.
Priests for Life
Moms for Liberty
First Liberty Institute
·ed.gov·
U.S. Department of Education, AFPI, TPUSA, Hillsdale College, and Over 40 National and State Organizations Launch America 250 Civics Coalition
Academic Freedom Syllabus
Academic Freedom Syllabus
Teachers wishing to engage academic freedom on the collegiate level or looking for resources and language for their high school work can find effective material here
·aaup.org·
Academic Freedom Syllabus
Law professor sues West Point over rules he says curb free speech | PBS News
Law professor sues West Point over rules he says curb free speech | PBS News
The U.S. Military Academy at West Point is facing a lawsuit that claims it’s violating the First Amendment. The suit, filed by its own law professor, Tim Bakken, alleges that the academy is banning professors from expressing opinions in the ...
The point is that what's most important is that we have a place to express ourselves. And in those places, when young people, for example, professors at West Point teach the future generals of the United States, those people will learn from the professors, and when they go on and be successful in their careers, including leading our country in wars, we will be more confident that they know the critical points that are necessary to win those wars.
The interest is in speaking and teaching and writing according to your conscience. And, if you can't do that, then everybody has a shared value in trying to ensure that we can make some changes and go about deciding how to do that, and do it effectively.
the point is that we have to have that opportunity to speak, or we can't advance as a society, as an institution, and our knowledge will be a whole lot less if we're disabled by prior restraint of our speaking, if we're subject to the approval of someone else before we speak or write or teach.
Tim Bakken,
longest-serving law professor in West Point's history
Tim Bakken, Law Professor, United States Military Academy at West Point
I wouldn't be able to opine on the value of a majority opinion of the Supreme Court or question a dissenting opinion of the Supreme Court if, in my opinion, those majority or dissenting opinions were right or wrong.
·pbs.org·
Law professor sues West Point over rules he says curb free speech | PBS News
Signs Referencing Climate Change Along with Web Pages Removed from Acadia National Park
Signs Referencing Climate Change Along with Web Pages Removed from Acadia National Park
More evidence of attempts to erase public memory - in this case the connection between the Wabanaki people and Cadillac Mountain
The online content was taken down at the beginning of the year because this administration believes in only administering facts based on real science to the American public, not brainless fear-mongering rhetoric used to steal taxpayer dollars.”
·barharborstory.substack.com·
Signs Referencing Climate Change Along with Web Pages Removed from Acadia National Park
Secretary’s Supplemental Priority and Definitions on Promoting Patriotic Education
Secretary’s Supplemental Priority and Definitions on Promoting Patriotic Education
The Secretary of Education is proposing that priority be given to applicants for federal grants that promote "patriotic education". It is important to read the definition of that term as well as the description of what counts at the "American political tradition"
The Secretary proposes one additional priority and related definitions for use in currently authorized discretionary grant programs or programs that may be authorized in the future.
The success of the American experiment in self-government requires the cultivation of both citizenship competency and informed patriotism among the American People. Citizens must understand why our free-market economy is a highly evolved system of cooperation fostered by our constitutional republic, and how it functions to secure the blessings of liberty for all Americans. This understanding can only be acquired and prove to be lasting when rooted in a recognition of the nobility of America's foundational principles and ideals, and an accurate and honest account of American history that shows how the United States has worked through private and public efforts to live up to them better. All too often, government is misunderstood to be synonymous with those things that We the People do together when in fact it is merely a subset thereof. Rather, our voluntary individual actions channeled through the intermediary institutions of civil society—such as our companies, places of worship, schools, fraternal organizations, and civic associations—are critically important to the proper functioning of the American economic, social, and political system. In the American system of liberty, educated citizens who know their rights and meet their responsibilities cooperate to build a more perfect Union and inherit the opportunities of a free society. To provide a common foundation and shared conception of this more perfect Union, we must transmit to all American students a shared understanding of our political, economic, intellectual, and cultural history—including our national symbols and heroes. At the same time, this American political tradition must be situated within the broader context of the political, economic, intellectual, and cultural history of Western Civilization. This priority focuses grant funds on programs that promote a patriotic education that cultivates citizen competency and informed patriotism among and communicates the American political tradition to students at all levels, including activities and programs accessible to students with special needs.
Patriotic education means a presentation of the history of America grounded in an accurate, honest, unifying, inspiring, and ennobling characterization of the American founding and foundational principles; a clear examination of how the United States has admirably grown closer to its noble principles throughout its history; and the concept that commitment to America's aspirations is beneficial and justified. Note: Nothing in this definition should be construed as implicating a particular curriculum, program of instruction, or specific academic
The influence of Western Europe upon the American political tradition.
the role of faith;
Note: Nothing in this definition should be construed as implicating a particular curriculum, program of instruction, or specific academic content.
·regulations.gov·
Secretary’s Supplemental Priority and Definitions on Promoting Patriotic Education
Land Aknowledgment Statements banned by Ohio State - Philosophy on Statements | Ohio State
Land Aknowledgment Statements banned by Ohio State - Philosophy on Statements | Ohio State
Ohio State has announced a policy that prohibits its professors from making a land acknowledgment in class.
Land acknowledgements are considered statements and cannot be issued on behalf of a unit, college, department, etc., used at university-sponsored events (virtual or in person) or placed on any university channel or resource such as websites, social media, signage, meeting or event agendas, event programs, etc. Land acknowledgements should not be used in written class materials or stated verbally unless there is a direct tie to the subject of the course.
Selecting some tragedies or events and not others can further harm members of our community who are acutely impacted by particular issues. Placing the university in the untenable position of determining on which issues to speak while excluding others does not properly project the care, empathy and value the university has for every member of its community.
A “controversial belief or policy” for the purpose of compliance with SB 1 means any belief or policy that is the subject of political controversy, including issues such as climate policies, electoral politics, foreign policy, diversity, equity, and inclusion programs, immigration policy, marriage, or abortion.
·omc.osu.edu·
Land Aknowledgment Statements banned by Ohio State - Philosophy on Statements | Ohio State
The Founders Museum - White House
The Founders Museum - White House
Erasmus said "it takes a nail to drive out another nail" - this is the White House's attempt to shape an alternate understanding of the past, adding to attacks on historians, scholarship, research and education.
·whitehouse.gov·
The Founders Museum - White House
ACLS Statement Regarding the White House Review of Smithsonian Institution Museums
ACLS Statement Regarding the White House Review of Smithsonian Institution Museums
ACLS stands in firm opposition to the latest directive by the White House forcing Smithsonian Institution museums to subject their presentation of American history to government review.
The American Council of Learned Societies (ACLS) stands in firm opposition to the latest directive by the White House forcing Smithsonian Institution museums to subject their presentation of American history to government review. This supersedes the oversight of professional scholars and makes the museums tools of the presidential administration.
The genuinely patriotic thing we can all do in this moment is to speak out on behalf of the scholars who have dedicated their lives to helping us understand our nation, and for the right of all Americans to learn about our history and culture free from government intrusion.
·acls.org·
ACLS Statement Regarding the White House Review of Smithsonian Institution Museums
#79 in Simon v. Ivey (N.D. Ala., 2:25-cv-00067) – CourtListener.com
#79 in Simon v. Ivey (N.D. Ala., 2:25-cv-00067) – CourtListener.com
Federal court refuses to block Alabama’s “divisive concepts” law, says university faculty classroom speech is government speech with no First Amendment protection
·storage.courtlistener.com·
#79 in Simon v. Ivey (N.D. Ala., 2:25-cv-00067) – CourtListener.com
A Message to Students at Robert E. Lee High School in Midland, Texas
A Message to Students at Robert E. Lee High School in Midland, Texas
This open letter from a Civil War historian to students at a high school in Texas shows the a confrontation between the record of the past and the desire of some to change other's understanding of the past despite that record
·kevinmlevin.substack.com·
A Message to Students at Robert E. Lee High School in Midland, Texas
OAH | Statement on the White House Review of the Smithsonian
OAH | Statement on the White House Review of the Smithsonian
This correspondence and its underlying command represent an unacceptable instance of ongoing executive overreach, striking at the independence of one of our nation’s preeminent historical and cultural institutions.
Smithsonian Institution is not, and has never been, under the authority of the Executive Branch. It is an independent statutory agency, led by the Secretary and governed by a bipartisan Board of Regents as established by law
it asks the hundreds of professionals who work at the Smithsonian to violate their ethics and their dedication to free and open historical inquiry.
Together, these moves threaten to weaponize our shared past to serve political imperatives of the present and an imagined future. They politicize the artifacts, recorded stories, and historical experiences that belong to the American people and that help to bring a full, unvarnished picture of our democracy into public view not for indoctrination, but for education.
·oah.org·
OAH | Statement on the White House Review of the Smithsonian
Letter to the Smithsonian: Internal Review of Smithsonian Exhibitions and Materials
Letter to the Smithsonian: Internal Review of Smithsonian Exhibitions and Materials
The Honorable Lonnie G. Bunch III Secretary, Smithsonian Institution 1000 Jefferson Dr SW Washington, DC 20560 Subject: Internal Review of Smithsonian
In this spirit, and in accordance with Executive Order 14253, Restoring Truth and Sanity to American History, we will be leading a comprehensive internal review of selected Smithsonian museums and exhibitions. This initiative aims 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.
By focusing on Americanism—the people, principles, and progress that define our nation—we can work together to renew the Smithsonian’s role as the world’s leading museum institution.
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.
·whitehouse.gov·
Letter to the Smithsonian: Internal Review of Smithsonian Exhibitions and Materials
Historians Respond to Federal Actions - AHA
Historians Respond to Federal Actions - AHA
AHA members are providing important historical context and insight to the public on the recent actions by the federal government.
·historians.org·
Historians Respond to Federal Actions - AHA
H.R. 8931 | U.S. Department of the Interior
H.R. 8931 | U.S. Department of the Interior
This is just one example of the many regarding the work to change long-held understandings of the past - a bill on Congress to change the word "Historic" to "Battlefield" in the official name of the park
·doi.gov·
H.R. 8931 | U.S. Department of the Interior
National Council of History Educators - A Message of Support
National Council of History Educators - A Message of Support
Every professional history education organization should echo this message of support, many do - making the absence of voice in other organizations stand out in shame even more
·ncheteach.org·
National Council of History Educators - A Message of Support
In Defense of Academic Freedom - The Atlantic
In Defense of Academic Freedom - The Atlantic
The first principle he listed was the freedom to make personal choices within the limits of the law. The second principle was “unrestricted freedom of thought.” And the third principle was one’s right to due process when accused of breaking the law. “
By standing for “unrestricted free trade in ideas,”
Greg Lukianoff, the president of the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE),
the threat to academic freedom today arguably surpasses the threat that existed in the 1950s
·theatlantic.com·
In Defense of Academic Freedom - The Atlantic
Help Save the California Digitial Newspaper Collection
Help Save the California Digitial Newspaper Collection
Historians and history teachers have had the experience of searching and stumbling across primary sources like digital newspaper collections. Executive Orders and the Harvard pushback gets most attention, but there are countless collections and primary source archives in danger of disappearing. The destruction of access to sources is an important part of the war on history
·givecampus.com·
Help Save the California Digitial Newspaper Collection
This State University Has a Plan to Take on Trump - The New York Times
This State University Has a Plan to Take on Trump - The New York Times
“We needed to write something that had some meat,” said David Salas-de la Cruz, who directs the chemistry graduate program at Rutgers University-Camden. He likened the effort to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, or NATO, a military alliance of 32 countries.
Even without overt buy-in from administrators, supporters said the clear goals first laid out by the Rutgers faculty had already been instrumental in helping to shift the tone of the national debate.
·nytimes.com·
This State University Has a Plan to Take on Trump - The New York Times
418TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE FIRST LANDING AND THE RAISING OF THE CAPE HENRY CROSS – The White House
418TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE FIRST LANDING AND THE RAISING OF THE CAPE HENRY CROSS – The White House
This commemorative Executive Order doesn't reference history education, yet references history with language laden with references Christian nationalism
Godspeed
courageous band of Christians
towering wooden cross
thanks to God
obey God, seek His blessing, and place their trust in Him
Yet, by the grace of God,
hallowed shores
majestic granite cross
testament to the steadfast Christian belief
God’s grace abides, His mercy is abundant, and His glory is everlasting
glorifies our God Almighty.
Nation under God and to always seek His blessing and protection
we prayerfully renew our covenant to always be one Nation under God and to always seek His blessing and protection.
we pledge to forge a future that always celebrates our history, honors our heritage, and glorifie
Today, a majestic granite cross stands on those same hallowed shores as a testament to the steadfast Christian belief of the Jamestown settlers that God’s grace abides, His mercy is abundant, and His glory is everlasting.
dedicated the land to His glory.
·whitehouse.gov·
418TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE FIRST LANDING AND THE RAISING OF THE CAPE HENRY CROSS – The White House
Brown University cuts Choices Program after 35 years
Brown University cuts Choices Program after 35 years
One by one resources that teachers took for granted are disappearing
Brown is cutting ties with the Choices Program, a long-running high school history curriculum used by over a million students nationwide, citing the program’s financial challenges that could not be effectively managed with existing University resources.
t. This process accelerated as a result of the University’s goals to reduce its $46 million operating deficit and amid threats to federal funding, he noted.
Institute for the Study of Global Antisemitism and Policy
accusing Choices of “foreign influence” that has promoted “anti-Israel bias” in its curriculum materials. Brown has disputed these claims.
The decision to pull support from Choices is all but certain to eliminate access to its digital materials, according to University Spokesperson Amanda McGregor and several program staffers.
“Few happenings in my 24-year career teaching high school history have so confounded my sense of what is right and good, but word of the demise of Choices has caused the global community of history teachers to be saddened,”
·browndailyherald.com·
Brown University cuts Choices Program after 35 years
American Association of Colleges and Universities - Public Statement: A Call for Constructive Engagement (April 22)
American Association of Colleges and Universities - Public Statement: A Call for Constructive Engagement (April 22)
College and University presidents have signed on to this statement speaking against unprecedented government overreach and political interference in public education and calling for constructive engagement
Our colleges and universities share a commitment to serve as centers of open inquiry where, in their pursuit of truth, faculty, students, and staff are free to exchange ideas and opinions across a full range of viewpoints without fear of retribution, censorship, or deportation.
·aacu.org·
American Association of Colleges and Universities - Public Statement: A Call for Constructive Engagement (April 22)