White House Says Slavery Is Being Taught Wrong, Should Not Be So Negative

[Rogue Valley]

White House says slavery is being taught wrong, should not be so negative

Special Assistant to the President Lindsey Halligan said the Smithsonian museums had become "laboratories for political experiments."

www.newsweek.com

Trump official Lindsey Halligan. 'Reviewing' Smithsonian exhibitions.

8.21.25
On August 12 White House official Lindsey Halligan wrote to Smithsonian Secretary Lonnie Bunch saying the White House would lead "a comprehensive internal review of selected Smithsonian museums and exhibitions." On his Truth Social website President Donald Trump described the Smithsonian as "OUT OF CONTROL" and said museums across the United States are "WOKE." Critics have accused the White House of "political interference" and pushing a "sanitized" version of history, while supporters claim the Smithsonian fails to achieve political balance. According to the letter the first phase of the review will focus on the following museums: 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, and Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden.

It said additional museums could be included later as part of a second phase of the review. In a statement sent to Newsweek the Smithsonian said: "The Smithsonian's work is grounded in a deep commitment to scholarly excellence, rigorous research, and the accurate, factual presentation of history. "We are reviewing the letter with this commitment in mind and will continue to collaborate constructively with the White House, Congress, and our governing Board of Regents." On August 14 Mary Trump, the president's estranged niece, highlighted his pressure on the Smithsonian Institute as an example of the "unique threat" she believes he poses to the future of the U.S. The removal of an exhibition covering Trump's two impeachment bids from the Smithsonian National Museum of American History recently sparked backlash.

Try as I might, I just can't think of any inherent benefit of slavery to the enslaved.

I think the Trump administration's goal here is to remove as much black and brown American history from the Smithsonian as possible.

This is the same Trump administration that recently ordered the US Army to rename its military bases using the names of Confederate traitiors.

And yes, Donald Trump was sued by the Federal government in 1973 for housing discrimination against African-Americans and Puerto Ricans in New York City.....

United States v. Fred C. Trump, Donald Trump, and Trump Management, Inc.

 

[Greenbeard]

Touting Jackie Robinson's military service on military websites was deemed too woke by this administration. The hoods are fully off here, they're not trying to be subtle about any of it.

 

[j brown's body]

Trump's attitude towards POC matches his attitude toward women They are to be subjugated, used and abused as desired.

As a Eugenicist, he believes they are naturally inferior.

 

[Grand Mal]

White House says slavery is being taught wrong, should not be so negative

Special Assistant to the President Lindsey Halligan said the Smithsonian museums had become "laboratories for political experiments."

www.newsweek.com

Trump official Lindsey Halligan. 'Reviewing' Smithsonian exhibitions.



Try as I might, I just can't think of any inherent benefit of slavery to the enslaved.

I think the Trump administration's goal here is to remove as much black and brown American history from the Smithsonian as possible.

This is the same Trump administration that recently ordered the US Army to rename its military bases using the names of Confederate traitiors.

And yes, Donald Trump was sued by the Federal government in 1973 for housing discrimination against African-Americans and Puerto Ricans in New York City.....

United States v. Fred C. Trump, Donald Trump, and Trump Management, Inc.

The USA accounted for less than 5% of the trans-Atlantic slave trade. Slavery was one of the largest, longest-running evils in world history. Anyone who tries to say that the harm caused by slavery is exaggerated is hopelessly blindered, at best, and maybe just ignoring history for the sake of a fictional narrative.
This kind of crap is why American student performance compared internationally keeps sliding downwards. School agendas being to produce proud, loyal citizens, not informed critical thinkers.

 

[element94]

White House Says Slavery Is Being Taught Wrong, Should Not Be So Negative​

Just ask the Israelites.

 

[Loulit01]

Lindsey Halligan​

Halligan attended Holy Family High school, and after graduation attended Regis University in Denver and earned a degree in political science and broadcast journalism. She competed in the Miss Colorado USA pageant twice in 2009 she was a semifinalist, and in 2010 she was third runner up.

She attended Regis University, where she obtained her degree in politics. University of Miami School of Law. She was admitted to the Florida Bar in 2014.

Halligan has represented US president Donald Trump since 2022
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I'm brimming with confidence in her abilities.

 

[Rogue Valley]

I would wager that Trump official Lindsey Halligan's knowledge of US slavery is negligable. Before meeting Trump, she practiced insurance law.

And yet this individual - who is not a Historian - is in charge of vetting History and Exhibitions at the many Smithsonian museums.

Halligan has represented former US president Donald Trump since 2022. By August 2022, she had never handled a federal case.[6][8] She was at Mar-a-Lago during the FBI search of Mar-a-Lago in August 2022, quickly became involved in Trump's lawsuit in October 2022 against CNN for allegedly comparing Trump to Hitler, and has been involved in his defense against the federal government in the classified documents case.[9][7][10][11] Trump's Save America PAC paid Halligan $212,000 from June 2022 to June 2023.[18] In a March 2025 executive order, Trump tasked Halligan and Vice President J.D. Vance with removing "improper ideology" regarding portrayal of race in American history in the Smithsonian Institution.[19][2]

Lindsey Halligan - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

 

[Peacenik]

White House says slavery is being taught wrong, should not be so negative

Special Assistant to the President Lindsey Halligan said the Smithsonian museums had become "laboratories for political experiments."

www.newsweek.com

Trump official Lindsey Halligan. 'Reviewing' Smithsonian exhibitions.



Try as I might, I just can't think of any inherent benefit of slavery to the enslaved.

I think the Trump administration's goal here is to remove as much black and brown American history from the Smithsonian as possible.

This is the same Trump administration that recently ordered the US Army to rename its military bases using the names of Confederate traitiors.

And yes, Donald Trump was sued by the Federal government in 1973 for housing discrimination against African-Americans and Puerto Ricans in New York City.....

United States v. Fred C. Trump, Donald Trump, and Trump Management, Inc.

Trump is a racist. He has a lot of racists who support him. Of course he wants slavery depicted to not be so bad.

 

[Peacenik]

"Critics have accused the White House of "political interference" and pushing a "sanitized" version of history, while supporters claim the Smithsonian fails to achieve political balance."

Quit trying to politicize museums, Donald.

Slavery was horrible for slaves.

There is no way to soften that.

Stop appeasing to racists!

 

[Peter]

****in hell.
Trying to claim slavery isn't all bad?

This is going to take some super serious work to polish this turd.

What next?
Genocide is sometimes fine?

Nelix wasn't the worst character ever on Trek?

****ing unbelievable.

 

[Peacenik]

White House says slavery is being taught wrong, should not be so negative

Special Assistant to the President Lindsey Halligan said the Smithsonian museums had become "laboratories for political experiments."

www.newsweek.com

Trump official Lindsey Halligan. 'Reviewing' Smithsonian exhibitions.



Try as I might, I just can't think of any inherent benefit of slavery to the enslaved.

I think the Trump administration's goal here is to remove as much black and brown American history from the Smithsonian as possible.

This is the same Trump administration that recently ordered the US Army to rename its military bases using the names of Confederate traitiors.

And yes, Donald Trump was sued by the Federal government in 1973 for housing discrimination against African-Americans and Puerto Ricans in New York City.....

United States v. Fred C. Trump, Donald Trump, and Trump Management, Inc.

""Museums that are over 70 percent funded by the federal government shouldn't be laboratories for political experiments.""

Then keep your racist views out of it, Halligan.

 

[Peacenik]

"It's not about whitewashing"

Of course it is.

 

[Peter]

This is like trying to claim The British Empre was fantastic and everything it did was wonderful.
The only reason the US rebelled was because they wanted to be misserable.

Being happy is nice for a while but everyone loves a good old fashioned sulk.

 

[Lycanthrope]

The article isn't really clear about specifics re: how the Trump Administration would like to see more emphasis on "hope and progress" in slavery exhibits.

Maybe a big sign at the end of an exhibit saying "Isn't it hopeful and progressive that we don't tolerate slavery anymore? USA! USA! USA!"

 

[Peter]

The article isn't really clear about specifics re: how the Trump Administration would like to see more emphasis on "hope and progress" in slavery exhibits.

Maybe a big sign at the end of an exhibit saying "Isn't it hopeful and progressive that we don't tolerate slavery anymore? USA! USA! USA!"

There are no upsides to slavery.
There is simply no way I could justfy owning other human being, none.

It's that simple.

 

[Lycanthrope]

There are no upsides to slavery.
There is simply no way I could justfy owning other human being, none.

It's that simple.

I'm being as open minded as possible here, and assuming the Trump Admin thinks so as well.

But they want it emphasized that America doesn't enslave people anymore, let's focus on that, and stop "obsessing" about the horrors of slavery. Let's focus on how wonderful our nation is for abolishing it!

Something along those lines I'm guessing.

 

[Greenbeard]

I'm being as open minded as possible here, and assuming the Trump Admin thinks so as well.

Inconsistent with their bizarre insistence on glorifying the Confederacy and its traitors.

 

[Lycanthrope]

Inconsistent with their bizarre insistence on glorifying the Confederacy and its traitors.

That certainly complicates things.

 

[Peter]

I'm being as open minded as possible here, and assuming the Trump Admin thinks so as well.

But they want it emphasized that America doesn't enslave people anymore, let's focus on that, and stop "obsessing" about the horrors of slavery. Let's focus on how wonderful our nation is for abolishing it!

Something along those lines I'm guessing.

Erm, the US abolished slavery after the UK.
It wasn't a trend setter in that aspect of history.

 

[Lycanthrope]

Erm, the US abolished slavery after the UK.
It wasn't a trend setter in that aspect of history.

I am in complete agreement with you, don't misconstrue what I'm saying.

MAGAs are proponents of American exceptionalism, however, and that's how I'm trying to understand their viewpoint here. Their argument is yes, slavery was bad but to "obsess" over it or any other dark aspect of our history as the "radical leftists" do is simply trying to tear down America as a great, benevolent nation and make "us" feel guilt and shame.

Is ignoring history bullshit? Yes. Is wanting to gloss over negatives in our history bullshit? Of course. Is it contradictory, as someone else suggested, for MAGAs to want to see Confederate figures recognized/lionized while at the same time minimizing that they were the defenders of a slave state? Without doubt.

But this is nevertheless how MAGAs think.

 

[Jezcoe]

I'm being as open minded as possible here, and assuming the Trump Admin thinks so as well.

But they want it emphasized that America doesn't enslave people anymore, let's focus on that, and stop "obsessing" about the horrors of slavery. Let's focus on how wonderful our nation is for abolishing it!

Something along those lines I'm guessing.

Yeah... thats great.

Then there was the century after that where there was state sponsored oppression of the former slaves and their descendants.

I am sure they want to sweep that under the rug also.

 

[Lycanthrope]

Yeah... thats great.

Then there was the century after that where there was state sponsored oppression of the former slaves and their descendants.

I am sure they want to sweep that under the rug also.

Well of course. To "harp" on the continued systemic racism in our history post Civil War is just "radical leftists" pushing an agenda of "hate" while the rest of us recognize that racism ended (at least among the right) with the Emancipation Proclamation.

 

[joluoto]

The USA accounted for less than 5% of the trans-Atlantic slave trade. Slavery was one of the largest, longest-running evils in world history. Anyone who tries to say that the harm caused by slavery is exaggerated is hopelessly blindered, at best, and maybe just ignoring history for the sake of a fictional narrative.
This kind of crap is why American student performance compared internationally keeps sliding downwards. School agendas being to produce proud, loyal citizens, not informed critical thinkers.

Yes. Slavery is one if the most evil institutions ever existed. And yes, everyone was involved. There are no innocens. Doesn't mean it shouldn't be taught. It absolutely should be. How else do we learn nit to repeat the sins of the past. In many ways what made the US most spectacular was how late it was abolished and that it required a civil war. But then again Brazil and Cuba was even later (and now we are only talking about Western nations).

 

[Grand Mal]

Yes. Slavery is one if the most evil institutions ever existed. And yes, everyone was involved. There are no innocens. Doesn't mean it shouldn't be taught. It absolutely should be. How else do we learn nit to repeat the sins of the past. In many ways what made the US most spectacular was how late it was abolished and that it required a civil war. But then again Brazil and Cuba was even later (and now we are only talking about Western nations).

There's rumours that Mauritania doesn't enforce the ban on slavery, that chattel slavery is still in practice there.

 

[Lycanthrope]

Yes. Slavery is one if the most evil institutions ever existed. And yes, everyone was involved. There are no innocens. Doesn't mean it shouldn't be taught. It absolutely should be. How else do we learn nit to repeat the sins of the past. In many ways what made the US most spectacular was how late it was abolished and that it required a civil war. But then again Brazil and Cuba was even later (and now we are only talking about Western nations).

Agreed.

Teaching about America's involvement in the slave trade is not a "radical leftist agenda of hate," anymore than Holocaust museums in Germany are part of a hateful agenda to tear down that nation. They are a reminder of a dark past that, along with good things, helped a national identity. They also serve as a historical admonishion - "Never Again."