{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.vanhollen.senate.gov/news/press-releases/van-hollen-alsobrooks-urge-administration-to-preserve-historical-accuracy-at-harpers-ferry-national-park", "Van Hollen, Alsobrooks Urge Administration to Preserve Historical Accuracy at Harpers Ferry National Park", "2025-09-30", "2025", "2025-09", "Democrat", "Senate", "MD", "Chris Van Hollen", "V000128", "www.vanhollen.senate.gov", "vanhollen", "https://www.vanhollen.senate.gov/news/press-releases", "scraper", "Today, U.S. Senators Chris Van Hollen and Angela Alsobrooks (both D-Md.) urged the U.S. Department of the Interior to reverse any plans to whitewash American history at Harpers Ferry National Park. In their letter to Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum, the lawmakers expressed serious concerns about reports that the Department directed signs to be removed or covered at Harpers Ferry in response to President Trump\u2019s March 27 executive order demanding that federal museums, parks, and other historical sites minimize or remove references to slavery and other dark chapters in American history.\n\n\u201cWe are writing to express serious concern about reports that signs within Harpers Ferry National Historic Park will be removed or altered to comply with President Trump\u2019s executive order to whitewash American history. We must face, seek to understand, and learn from our nation\u2019s history in order to continue our pursuit of a more perfect union. Hiding key information about our nation\u2019s history insults the memory of those who lived it and those who fought to uphold our American ideals,\u201d the Senators began.\n\n\u201cOn September 15, it was reported that Interior Department officials have ordered the removal or covering up of more than 30 signs at Harpers Ferry National Historic Park,\u201d they continued. \u201cThe signs reportedly include references to racial discrimination and racial animus toward formerly enslaved people. The National Park Service (NPS) has a record of providing Americans with unbiased information about American heritage, culture, and land. This decision to censor narratives about the darker side of American history\u2014the ramifications of which are still felt today\u2014contradicts NPS\u2019s core mission to preserve historic places and accurately tell the story of American history and heritage.\u201d\n\nThe Senators concluded, \u201cWe urge you to immediately reverse course on any and all efforts to erase important components of American history and maintain the factual historic information included at Harper\u2019s Ferry National Historic Park and all National Park sites.\u201d\n\nText of the letter can be viewed here and below.\n\nDear Secretary Burgum,\n\nWe are writing to express serious concern about reports that signs within Harpers Ferry National Historic Park will be removed or altered to comply with President Trump\u2019s executive order to whitewash American history. We must face, seek to understand, and learn from our nation\u2019s history in order to continue our pursuit of a more perfect union. Hiding key information about our nation\u2019s history insults the memory of those who lived it and those who fought to uphold our American ideals.\n\nHarpers Ferry National Historic Park is the site where abolitionist John Brown led a raid on the town\u2019s armory in 1859 with the goal of arming enslaved people to rebel against the institution of slavery. It is also the site of the Battle of Harpers Ferry, a significant battle during the Civil War\u2014a war fought over the future of slavery in our nation.\n\nOn September 15, it was reported that Interior Department officials have ordered the removal or covering up of more than 30 signs at Harpers Ferry National Historic Park, which is located on the southwestern border of Maryland, where our state intersects with Virginia and West Virginia. The signs reportedly include references to racial discrimination and racial animus toward formerly enslaved people.\n\nThe National Park Service (NPS) has a record of providing Americans with unbiased information about American heritage, culture, and land. This decision to censor narratives about the darker side of American history\u2014the ramifications of which are still felt today\u2014contradicts NPS\u2019s core mission to preserve historic places and accurately tell the story of American history and heritage. It also jeopardizes the public\u2019s trust in NPS as an unbiased source of historic and cultural information.\n\nWe urge you to immediately reverse course on any and all efforts to erase important components of American history and maintain the factual historic information included at Harpers Ferry National Historic Park and all National Park sites.\n\nSincerely,", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-06T19:10:29Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://www.vanhollen.senate.gov/news/press-releases/van-hollen-alsobrooks-urge-administration-to-preserve-historical-accuracy-at-harpers-ferry-national-park"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 0.7472971919924021, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}