A towering statue of Confederate General Robert E. Lee is removed in Richmond, Va., in September 2021. It was one of many monuments and statues to Confederate leaders removed or relocated following protests after George Floyd’s murder in 2020.
Steve Helber/AP
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Steve Helber/AP
President Trump signed an executive order on Thursday aimed at “restoring truth and sanity to American history” – decrying what the order characterized as efforts to “undermine the remarkable achievements of the United States by casting its founding principles and historical milestones in a negative light.” The order calls for the removal of “divisive race-centered ideology” from the Smithsonian’s museums and research centers. It also calls on the Secretary of the Interior to restore public monuments, statues and other markers that have been removed or changed since 2020. But it’s unclear how many sites — and which ones — will be impacted by the executive order.
