The Trump administration plans to appeal the court decision to restore the President’s House exhibit that acknowledges the nine slaves George Washington brought to Philadelphia during his presidency.
The National Park Services abruptly removed the exhibit’s display panels and video screen from Independence National Historical park on Jan. 22. The city immediately filed a lawsuit claiming that the exhibit could not be altered without the city’s approval, citing several agreements. On Monday, U.S. District Judge Cynthia Rufe ruled in the city’s favor and ordered that the exhibit be restored.
On Tuesday, the U.S. Department of the Interior said it would appeal the decision, with a spokesperson telling WHYY that it believes NPS has the unilateral authority to alter the NPS exhibits across the country, regardless of the past agreements. The case now moves to the US. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit.
There, cases are typically heard by a panel of three judges. The court has 14 members, including six that were appointed by President Donald Trump. One of them, Emil Bove III, served on Trump’s criminal defense team and was chosen for a high-ranking job in the Justice Department. He was narrowly confirmed to the court last summer. In December, a complaint was filed against Bove after he attended a Trump rally at a resort in Mount Pocono.
On Tuesday, Mayor Cherelle Parker, who has shied away from criticizing the Trump administration, released a video praising Rufe’s decision. She said the city takes pride in “all of our history and all of our truth, no matter how painful it may be.”
“We will not allow anyone to erase our history,” Parker said.
The President’s House acknowledges the country’s history with slavery and tells the stories of nine people enslaved at Washington’s home in Philadelphia during his tenure as the first president of the United States. It opened in 2010 as a joint endeavor between city officials, the federal government and the Avenging the Ancestors Coalition, an activist group that had advocated for the exhibit.
It was taken down in accordance with an order from Interior Secretary Doug Burgum. The order, issued in May, called for a review of displays that “disparage Americans past or living.” All that remains is the open air structure and a monument with the names of the nine slaves. The panels are being stored at a facility near the National Constitution Center.
At a Jan. 30 court hearing, Rufe said no more changes could be made to the exhibit until a ruling was made. Lawyers for the city claimed NPS can not remove or change the President’s House exhibit without consulting Philadelphia officials. They pointed to the National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom Act, the amendments to create the exhibits and the 1948 agreement that established the 54 acres of Independence National Historical Park, which includes the land underneath the President’s House.
In response, an attorney representing Burgum and the Department of the Interior argued that, following the exhibit’s completion, ownership was transferred to NPS in 2015. He also said the 2006 agreement to create the President’s House, which states that city approval is needed for changes, had expired.