


A photo of Harriet Tubman on Monday was restored on a U.S. National Park Service webpage dedicated to the history of the Underground Railroad after her portrait’s removal and other controversial edits were harshly criticized.
In a statement shared with multiple news outlets, the National Park Service said the reported changes had not been authorized by its leadership.
“Changes to the Underground Railroad page on the National Park Service’s website were made without approval from NPS leadership nor Department leadership,” a spokesperson said. “The webpage was immediately restored to its original content.”
The edits, first reported by The Washington Post, appeared to be in response to President Donald Trump’s crackdown on diversity, equity and inclusion.
Following Trump’s inauguration earlier this year, a quote from Tubman, its most famous “conductor,” and her photo originally featured on the top right corner of the page titled “What is the Underground Railroad?” were removed and replaced with commemorative stamps featuring five abolitionists, including Tubman. The stamps had text overlayed noting in part “Black/white cooperation.”
Parts of the article featured in the main body of that webpage also were edited, with the introductory paragraphs no longer referencing the word “slavery.” The article was revised to remove high-up mentions of the efforts of enslaved Black Americans to free themselves.
Instead, the edited version described the Underground Railroad as “one of the most significant expressions of the American civil rights movement during its evolution over more than three centuries.”
“The Underground Railroad bridged the divides of race, religion, sectional differences, and nationality,” the updated article added.
The changes were met with backlash.
Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) said the move illustrates Trump’s effort to “rewrite the history of the Underground Railroad — even diminishing its conductor, [Maryland’s] own Harriet Tubman.”
Former U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton also took a jab at the administration over the revelation.
Meanwhile, civil rights lawyer Sherrilyn Ifill told CNN’s Anderson Cooper “the only way you could think that was somehow divisive is if you think that Black people are not Americans, because their heroism as Americans makes the country better.”
A review by the Post published Sunday found that dozens of pages run by the National Park Service have been edited to tone down references to “some of the most shameful moments” in American history.
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Trump’s targeting of anything he considers as promoting DEI also has affected material related to other departments.
Last month, a webpage dedicated to Black baseball pioneer Jackie Robinson as part of a series titled “Sports Heroes Who Served” was removed and quickly restored on the Department of Defense’s website.