The Second Jim Crow’s History Lessons

As we enter the Second Jim Crow, there is no place for Black history in America’s stories of itself. Quite literally:

The Trump administration has ordered the removal of signs and exhibits related to slavery at multiple national parks, according to four people familiar with the matter, including a historic photograph of a formerly enslaved man showing scars on his back.

The latest orders include removing information at Harpers Ferry National Historic Park in West Virginia, two people familiar with the matter said, where the abolitionist John Brown led a raid seeking to arm slaves for a revolt. Staff have also been told that information at the President’s House Site in Philadelphia, where George Washington kept slaves, does not comply with the policy, according to a third individual.

Jonathan Zimmerman, a University of Pennsylvania professor who studies the history of education, said this is the latest installment in the Trump administration’s unprecedented interference with the nation’s civic institutions — a campaign which also includes Trump’s takeover of the Kennedy Center and attempts to pressure the Smithsonian.

“This represents an enormous increase in federal power and control over the things we learn,” Zimmerman said. “Brought to you by the team that says education should be state and local.”

At Harpers Ferry, staff flagged more than 30 signs, according to a person familiar with the matter and documents reviewed by The Post, that highlight information potentially in violation of Trump’s policy. They include signs referring to racial discrimination and the hostility of White people to people who were formerly enslaved.

Park Service officials marked the submission as “out of compliance,” with staff now expected to cover up parts of signs or remove them, the person said.

Separately, Park Service officials have ordered the removal of a photograph illustrating violence against slaves, known as “The Scourged Back,” at one national park. The photograph, taken in 1863, shows scars on the back of a man probably named Peter Gordon from wounds inflicted by his masters before he escaped slavery.

I actually wonder at what point teaching slavery in high school or college will be made illegal. Could be within a year or so.