A National Park Service web page about the Underground Railroad appeared to have been restored on Monday to prominently show the abolitionist leader Harriet Tubman, after it had been changed in recent months to remove a large photo and quotes from her.
The page appeared to have been changed in February to instead show images of postage stamps that highlight “Black/white cooperation.” New text emphasized that the Underground Railroad “bridged the divides of race” and other differences. The changes were first reported by The Washington Post.
A spokesperson for the National Park Service told CNN that changes to the page had been made “without approval” from the agency’s leadership, and that the old version was “immediately restored.” The agency did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Tuesday.
The web page appeared to be one of many on government websites that have recently been edited or erased as the Trump administration works to purge references to diversity and inclusion.
Materials on the Arlington National Cemetery website highlighting the graves of Black and female service members have vanished or been obscured. An article on the Defense Department website devoted to Jackie Robinson’s military career disappeared and then reappeared. And another Defense Department page featuring the biography of Maj. Gen. Charles Calvin Rogers, a Black Army general who received the Medal of Honor, also disappeared before being restored.
On Monday, Senator Chris Van Hollen of Maryland, a Democrat, accused the president of trying to “whitewash” history.
“Trump is trying to rewrite the history of the Underground Railroad — even diminishing its conductor, MD’s own Harriet Tubman,” Mr. Van Hollen said in a post on X, formerly Twitter. “The Underground Railroad is an important part of the American story. We cannot let him whitewash it as part of his larger effort to erase our history.”
