Court Blocks Censorship and Erasure of American History and Science at National Parks

BOSTON-A U.S. District Court has issued an order stopping the Trump administration from censoring American history and science and ordering the restoration of unlawfully censored information displayed in America's largest classroom-our national parks. The preliminary injunction comes in National Parks Conservation Association et al. v. Department of the Interior, et al., a case brought by a coalition of organizations committed to protecting America's national parks, preserving and sharing history, promoting scientific literacy and access, and providing high-quality interpretive materials.

The coalition, which includes the National Parks Conservation Association, American Association for State and Local History, Association of National Park Rangers, Coalition to Protect America's National Parks, Society for Experiential Graphic Design, and Union of Concerned Scientists, filed a challenge earlier this year to a U.S. Department of the Interior policy that is actively erasing history and science from national parks. Democracy Forward represents the coalition in the matter.

In March 2025, President Trump issued an executive order directing the rewriting and sanitization of American history and science at national parks. Interior Secretary Doug Burgum followed suit on May 20, issuing a secretary's order that launched the implementation of the president's directive within the National Park Service (NPS). This order has led to the removal and censorship of exhibits that share factually accurate and relevant U.S. history and scientific knowledge.

This campaign by the Trump administration has escalated, leading to the removal of many exhibits that discuss the history of slavery and enslaved people, civil rights, treatment of Indigenous peoples, climate science, and other core elements of the American experience. Some examples of how censorship is affecting parks, history and science at locations across the country are available here. Today's order gives the government three weeks to restore interpretive materials that have been altered or removed since May 20, 2025, and also blocks Defendants from further censoring exhibits at park sites under the secretary's order while litigation is pending. Today's order also requires the administration to provide the court with an update on progress restoring the censored information within five days and once each week thereafter.

"This summer, millions of visitors will flock to America's national parks to take in breathtaking park landscapes and walk in the footsteps of our fascinating history, 250 years after our nation was founded. Today's court ruling will help protect national parks from the administration's unprecedented campaign to erase history and science at these one-of-a-kind places. National parks belong to the American people and censorship of any kind goes against the values these places represent. Americans count on national parks to help us understand our full, rich history. Stories of triumph and tragedy alike deserve to be told out loud at parks." said Alan Spears, National Parks Conservation Association Senior Director for Cultural Resources.

"We are encouraged by the judge's order and grateful for the relief it grants National Park Service sites and the broader history field. America's history organizations offer vital forums for education, bridge-building, and civic practice, and they must be allowed to conduct their work free from government intimidation and censorship. On the eve of the 250th anniversary of our democracy, it's more important than ever to defend the public's access to a whole and honest story of America," said John R. Dichtl, President & CEO of the American Association for State and Local History.

"This is incredibly good news for all National Parks, but even more so for the many employees and former employees, who for decades have prided themselves for being able to provide truthful, accurate and unbiased information to the millions of visitors who have come to expect that from the stewards of their National Parks," said Bill Wade, Executive Director, Association of National Park Rangers.

"National parks have a sacred mandate: to preserve and interpret the full breadth of the American experience, the good and the bad," said Emily Thompson, Executive Director of the Coalition to Protect America's National Parks. "Visitors come not just to witness awe-inspiring landscapes, but to confront the complex, often painful tapestry of our history and our world-the triumphs and the failings. National parks are not propaganda tools nor should they be used for partisan purposes. They exist to preserve and interpret the full American story, not just the parts that make some politicians comfortable. This ruling will help ensure that remains the case."

"SEGD members design the experiences that help people connect with America's national parks: the exhibits, wayfinding, and interpretive displays that turn a visit into understanding. Our profession exists to communicate truth clearly and accessibly. When that truth is censored, it's not just history that's erased, it's the public's ability to see themselves in the full story of this country. We're proud to stand with this coalition to ensure our national parks remain places of honest learning for the 250th anniversary and beyond," said Cybelle Jones, CEO, Society for Experiential Graphic Design (SEGD).

"Today is a win for science and for ensuring that all visitors to our national parks can learn the truth about our nation's history and climate," said Dr. Gretchen Goldman, President and CEO at the Union of Concerned Scientists. "National parks are America's largest classroom, and removing science and history from these places isn't just wrong, it's a direct attack on the public's access to factual information. You don't protect our national parks by sanitizing them-you protect them by telling the full story, including the science of climate change. When the government erases science and history, it erases our ability to understand what's at stake."

The NPS is one of the country's largest storytellers of American history, teaching millions of visitors about a wide variety of stories at more than 430 national park sites throughout the United States. Congress has repeatedly established that national parks are intended for the benefit and enjoyment of all, and Congress has been clear that no action may be taken "in derogation of" this purpose, "except as directly and specifically provided by Congress."

The often conflicting, contradictory, and confusing statements issued by the Interior Department in an attempt to implement the president's censorship directive-about what materials at parks are under review and what signs, films, books, or brochures must be removed-make clear that the department ignored well-established principles and legal requirements when seeking to censor information at national parks.

"We are grateful that once again, judicial intervention has halted the unlawful overreach of the reckless Trump-Vance administration," said Skye Perryman, President and CEO of Democracy Forward. "And we are grateful the court not only stopped further censorship, but recognized the need to restore the exhibits the administration already illegally removed. We are honored to work with this amazingly brave coalition to defend America's largest classroom."

The legal team at Democracy Forward working on the case includes Brooke Menschel, Michael Torcello, Pablo Moraga, Mark Samburg, Steven Bressler, and Robin Thurston.

Read today's court order here.