A tip line established in national parks and monuments under the Trump administration has provoked widespread criticism from visitors, who have used it to express their opposition rather than to report inappropriate language.
The initiative invites visitors to report any language in parks that is “negative about either past or living Americans or that fails to emphasize the beauty, grandeur, and abundance of landscapes.” The system is accessed via QR codes displayed on signs throughout the parks.
According to sources within the National Park Service (NPS) cited by Government Executive, over 200 visitors have responded, but instead of submitting reports as prompted, they have used the platform to condemn the request as “outrageous.” These claims have not been independently verified by Newsweek.
In response, a Department of the Interior spokesperson criticized internal leaks concerning the matter, stating, “It is a true shame that employees are spending their time leaking to the media instead of doing work for the American people. The same American people who fund their paychecks. Leaks will not be tolerated and this will be investigated.”
The backlash underscores broader discontent with the Trump administration’s efforts to reshape how American history is presented at federal sites. Since President Donald Trump’s second term began, policies have included designating English as the national language, removing hundreds of books on race relations and LGBTQ+ history from military libraries, and restoring Confederate names to military bases. Additionally, references to transgender individuals have been removed from the Stonewall National Monument website, despite the significant role of a transgender woman in initiating the historic riot.
Visitors have noted the emergence of signs urging them to report language deemed negative toward America’s past or present, in line with Trump’s executive order titled “Restoring Truth and Sanity to American History.” This order mandates that federal historical sites “serve as solemn and uplifting public monuments” that highlight America’s “extraordinary heritage” and “consistent progress” toward liberty and prosperity.
Emails obtained by Government Executive reveal visitors’ candid responses. One commenter called the executive order “****” and praised parks for already “telling stories that contain hard truths,” emphasizing that “everyone is entitled to the truth to make better decisions in our lives.” Another visitor to Independence Hall in Philadelphia described the reporting signs as “outrageous,” accusing them of inviting visitors to police historians who are “simply doing their jobs: telling the truth.”
Critics have pointed out the importance of sites like Stonewall and the Manzanar National Historical Site—a former Japanese internment camp—in educating the public about painful chapters of American history to prevent repetition of past mistakes. The internment was authorized by the Alien Enemies Act, which the Trump administration is now reportedly leveraging to justify mass detention and deportation of undocumented immigrants.
The National Parks Conservation Association has voiced strong opposition to the executive order. Alan Spears, the organization’s senior director of Cultural Resources, warned, “The president’s executive order could jeopardize the Park Service’s mission to protect and interpret American history… Every American who cares about our country’s history should be worried about what people, places, and themes disappear next.”
Theresa Pierno, president of the National Parks Conservation Association, emphasized, “If our country erases the darker chapters of our history, we will never learn from our mistakes. These signs must come down immediately.”
In a public statement, Spears reaffirmed the commitment of National Park Service staff: “For more than a century, National Park Service staff have worked tirelessly to provide park visitors with a truthful accounting of the people and places at the center of that history. That truthful and factual accounting of history should not change, regardless of which political party is in power.”
Trump’s executive order also calls for revisions to Smithsonian Museum exhibits to avoid what it describes as “ideological indoctrination or divisive narratives that distort our shared history.” As the summer tourist season approaches, visitors can expect to see these controversial signs continue to appear in national parks across the country.
