They are coming for the gift shops ...

... I took myself on a field trip.

Kevin M. Levin is an historian and educator based in Boston with a particular interest in the history and memory of the Civil War era. If you have any interest in 19th century American history, I heartily recommend his Substack.

Levin warns that National Park sites and even their gift shops (!) are being altered to conform to the Trumpian white, male narrative of continental conquest that is balm to the weak little egos of MAGA fans. 

He takes off from a Washington Post article describing how the regime is aiming to rewrite and "clean up" our history

President Donald Trump issued an executive order in March that instructed the Smithsonian and the national parks to remove “improper ideology,” which could include discussions of historic racism and sexism. 

Since then, the Interior Department, which oversees the Park Service, has issued policies instructing agency staff to report any information that might be out of compliance, including gift shop merchandise, signs, educational films and websites. Visitors were also invited to submit comments.

Levin sees more dangers ahead in this regime's effort to change our memory of the nation's past:

First They Came For National Park Service Staff. Then They Came For the Funds. Then They Came For the Books. Where Will It End? 

... Park service staff have no guidelines to work with as to what might be problematic, but the books that are being flagged deal overwhelmingly with the history and legacy of slavery, the history of indigenous peoples, and other subjects that the Trump administration has targeted as inappropriate. 

... NPS bookstores are important to the integrity of individual sites. These stores feature [used to feature?] the latest scholarship surrounding specific subjects, giving visitors the opportunity to deepen their understanding of site-specific subjects.

He suggests how ordinary people might resist: 

There isn’t much that we can do, but we are not helpless. One thing people can do to support interpretation and NPS sites in general is to buy their books from these parks gift shops/bookstores. 

If you have a park close to you, make the trip and find a reason to purchase a book on a subject that is currently being targeted. 

Do it as a statement of resistance.

• • •

Today I did just that, visiting the Warming Hut which sits on the San Francisco waterfront near the Civil War-era Fort Point and the Golden Gate Bridge. 

Inside, it took me a moment to realize that, in addition to attractive collections of cook books and birding manuals, there was a corner devoted to serious history and policies relevant to the waterfront. 

Not bad. Lots here for a serious student of California.

Then I ventured further into the sales area. Next to the cash register I found the real treasures offered to visitors: 

Wow! this is a book selection for young resisters which is the kind of kids many try to raise around here.

The Golden Gate National Recreation Area of which the Warming Hut is a feature may enjoy some protection from the Trump regime because it works here in partnership with the Presidio Trust. Trump hates the Trust, but he may have trouble killing it. It does not take federal money and was designed by Congressman Phil Burton and Speaker-Emerita Nancy Pelosi to resist interference with the city's historic army base. Trump attempted to use one of his executive orders to abolish the Trust, but will certainly run into legal resistance if he does more than fume against its independence.