The Department of the Interior told two lawmakers it’s planning to put a dozen signs outside the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History as part of an executive order issued by President Donald Trump.
These signs are estimated to cost around $7,000 each, The Washington Post wrote.
The Interior Department said this in a letter to Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Ore. and Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska. Interior Secretary Doug Burgum said the signs will be temporary and haven’t been finalized.
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These signs will give visitors information about museum curators’ viewpoints, Burgum said. He said the curators turned the museum into a place for “personal, radical ideologies.”
“The informational signage therefore will provide visitors with important context about the exhibits they are about to encounter and the personal viewpoints that the curators of the exhibits are seeking to advance,” Burgum wrote.
Merkley criticized the move in a statement to NPR.
“This is another step in a well-planned pressure campaign by the Trump Administration to undermine the integrity and independence of the Smithsonian Institution,” he said. “I’ll fight like hell to protect the Smithsonian’s independence so that the Institution can continue to tell all of America’s story for generations to come.”
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