CORE Condemns Secretarial Order 3431: A Dangerous Attempt to Whitewash Public Memory on Federal Lands
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 23, 2025
As organizations committed to truth-telling, cultural heritage, and inclusive public memory, the Coalition for Outdoor Renaming and Education (CORE) stands in firm opposition to Secretarial Order 3431, issued by the U.S. Department of the Interior to implement Executive Order 14253, titled “Restoring Truth and Sanity to American History.”
Framed as a restoration of heritage, this Order instead mandates a sweeping review and possible reversal of interpretive signage, memorials, statues, and monuments across all public lands under the Department’s jurisdiction. It demands the removal of content that was previously updated to be a more accurate and inclusive documentation of this nation’s history, acknowledging a more diverse array of notable figures and events.
"The Trump administration is setting a chilling precedent," said Jessica Lambert, Co-Chair of CORE. "It empowers agencies to sanitize the past by eliminating historical content that reflects struggle, injustice, or complexity. This is an authoritarian move masquerading as patriotism."
The Order calls for land management agencies, including the National Park Service, Bureau of Land Management, and Fish & Wildlife Service, to audit interpretive materials dating back to January 2020 and remove anything that might be construed as critical of America’s past. It further directs agencies to replace such content with narratives that exclusively emphasize national triumph and landscape beauty, sidelining the lived experiences of Indigenous peoples, Black Americans, immigrants, and other marginalized communities.
From Independence Hall to historic battlegrounds, labor sites, and former internment camps, America’s public lands are places of both pride and pain. They hold space for complexity, reflection, and the ongoing work of democracy.
To obscure that reality is to rob future generations of the truth they deserve.
CORE Calls on Doug Burgum, Secretary of the Interior, to:
Immediately suspend implementation of Secretarial Order 3431 pending public comment, government-to-government consultation with Tribal Nations, and engagement with historians and State & Tribal Historic Preservation Officers.
Protect interpretive content that reflects the full truth of American history, including its injustices, movements for change, and cultural diversity.
Reject ideological censorship and uphold the mission of public lands as spaces of inclusive education, reflection, and shared memory.
“Our national parks, forests, refuges, and historic sites are more than just landscapes. They are places of healing, learning, and recreation. This order threatens to turn those spaces into tools of propaganda by replacing hard truths with a more convenient version of history, erasing the stories of millions of people in the process. Our public lands must reflect the full story of this country, not just the version some find most comfortable,” said Gerry James, CORE Policy Chair, Steering Committee member, and Deputy Director for the Sierra Club’s Outdoors For All Campaign.
"Reverting the names of our shared public places back to those reflecting a history of oppression, discrimination, and violence not only disregards the painful legacy associated with these names but also undermines a collective commitment to prioritizing cultural sensitivity and diverse storytelling based on accurate history,” said Olivia Porter, Co-Chair of CORE. “Our progress towards inclusive, healing outdoor places hinges on our ability to listen, learn, and uplift all communities and histories”
CORE stands with the countless communities who have worked to bring truth to the trails, monuments, and stories held on public lands. We call on all Americans to reject the politics of erasure and insist on a history that honors the full, unflinching complexity of who we are.
About CORE
The Coalition for Outdoor Renaming and Education (CORE) is a national alliance of advocates, educators, descendants, and stewards working to ensure that public memory reflects justice, truth, and belonging. We defend inclusive interpretation and work to protect spaces where all stories can be told with dignity and honesty.
Media Contact
renamingcoalition@gmail.com | www.outdoorrenaming.org
