In a move that has sparked widespread concern among historians, civil rights advocates, and the public, the National Park Service (NPS) has quietly removed a tribute to Harriet Tubman from its Underground Railroad webpage. The change, made without announcement, comes amid ongoing diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) rollbacks driven by the Trump Administration’s latest push to reshape how federal institutions approach racial and historical narratives.
Over the weekend, watchdogs and online observers noticed the absence of Tubman’s quote and image from the NPS’s official webpage dedicated to the Underground Railroad — a historical network of routes and safe houses used by enslaved African Americans to escape to free states and Canada during the 19th century.
Tubman’s Legacy Silenced?
Originally, the webpage featured a portrait of Harriet Tubman alongside a quote and detailed context around her role in the liberation of enslaved individuals. However, these elements have now vanished. Additionally, references to “enslaved” people and the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850 — a critical piece of legislation that criminalized assistance to escaping slaves — have also been scrubbed from the page.
While Tubman’s name still appears in the People Section of the site — alongside historical figures Frederick Douglass and Sojourner Truth — this section has reportedly remained unchanged since January 28, 2025. Her profile remains buried, with no prominent spotlight on her critical role in American history.
Shifting the Narrative
A new feature of the page includes tribute stamps of civil rights leaders and a new banner touting “Black/White Cooperation.” Critics argue that this shift subtly downplays the harsh realities of slavery and the brutality of American racial injustice by replacing individual narratives of resistance with broader, more sanitized language.
“It’s not just what’s being removed — it’s what’s replacing it,” said one civil rights scholar who noted the increasing trend of revising public history to reflect political ideology rather than historical truth.
In a statement provided to the Washington Post, the National Park Service defended its broader mission.
“The National Park Service has been entrusted with preserving local history, celebrating local heritage, safeguarding special places and sharing stories of American experiences. We take this role seriously and can point to many examples of how we tell nuanced and difficult stories about American history.”
However, the statement did not directly address why Tubman’s image and quote were removed, nor did it explain the decision to eliminate mentions of the Fugitive Slave Act — a cornerstone of Underground Railroad history.
Broader Context: DEI Rollbacks and Historical Reframing
This change comes as part of a broader rollback of diversity and inclusion programs across multiple federal agencies under the direction of the Trump Administration. In recent months, several policies aimed at advancing racial equity have been repealed or defunded, with a renewed emphasis on what some officials describe as “unifying” narratives that avoid “divisive” topics.
While critics argue that these moves amount to historical whitewashing, proponents claim they seek to avoid “politicizing” education and government institutions.
But erasing Harriet Tubman — a formerly enslaved woman who risked her life to lead more than 70 people to freedom — from a central page about the Underground Railroad risks distorting the very history the National Park Service is tasked to preserve.
Tubman, who later became an outspoken advocate for women’s suffrage and civil rights, died in 1913 at the age of 91. Her legacy, once considered so profound that she was set to replace Andrew Jackson on the $20
R396.04 bill, is now being quietly tucked away in what many view as a politically motivated reshaping of national memory.
Public Response and Future Implications
Historians, educators, and community leaders are now calling on the National Park Service to restore the Tubman tribute and reaffirm its commitment to full and accurate historical storytelling.
“Removing Tubman from a webpage about the Underground Railroad is like omitting Mandela from South African history — it makes no sense, unless you’re trying to rewrite what happened,” said one university professor of African-American studies.
In an era increasingly defined by battles over curriculum, statues, and museum exhibits, the fate of Harriet Tubman’s online legacy may prove to be more than a bureaucratic tweak — it may become a defining example of how history itself is shaped by those in power.
