Last month, AASLH and a group of co-plaintiffs filed a lawsuit challenging U.S. Department of the Interior Secretary’s Order 3431, “Restoring Truth and Sanity to American History,” which was designed to implement an identically-named 2025 executive order. The lawsuit seeks to defend the National Park Service (NPS), as well as the broader history field, from Trump administration efforts to advance a whitewashed, misleading version of America’s past in the place of whole and honest history.
The lawsuit is proceeding in federal district court, and the plaintiffs recently filed a motion for preliminary injunction requesting that the judge enjoin or stay the Secretary’s Order. The motion asks that the judge halt any further application of the order (e.g. the erasure of signs, removal of books, and other forms of censorship) and restore the status quo as it was before the order was issued.
We are joined in this challenge by the National Parks Conservation Association, Association of National Park Rangers, Coalition to Protect America’s National Parks, Society for Experiential Graphic Design, and Union of Concerned Scientists. The coalition is represented in the matter by Democracy Forward.
The past year has seen an unyielding tide of historical misinformation and malpractice coming from this administration, and AASLH remains committed to fighting back. But we can’t do so without your help. To support AASLH’s efforts to protect historical scholarship and best practices, please consider becoming a member or donating to our Annual Fund today.
