Donald Trump has ordered a national park to remove a famous 1863 photograph of an enslaved man known as 'The Scourged Back,' which shows his scarred back from brutal whippings. The Washington Post reported the order on September 15, citing anonymous sources, and noted that multiple national parks are affected by directives targeting signs and exhibits related to slavery. The specific park impacted was later identified as Harpers Ferry National Historic Park in West Virginia, with the President's House Site in Philadelphia also potentially affected. The order follows a broader crackdown on what the Trump administration calls 'corrosive ideology' in American museums, including a March executive order targeting Smithsonian-run institutions.
The removal matters because 'The Scourged Back' is a historically significant image that served as proof of slavery's horrors during the Civil War era, widely reprinted to educate Americans who could not witness enslavement firsthand. The photograph remains culturally relevant today, with artist Arthur Jafa incorporating versions into recent installations, and it is held by major institutions including the National Portrait Gallery and the National Museum of African American History and Culture. This action represents a continuing effort by the Trump administration to reshape historical narratives in federal museums and parks, with a Parks Service spokesperson stating that exhibits 'disproportionately emphasizing negative aspects of U.S. history' are under review.