A far-left online project from the Smithsonian has disappeared, just weeks after President Donald Trump signed executive orders enforcing laws against racial discrimination. The project was previously exposed for pushing racist claims about white people.
Soon after taking office in January, Trump signed executive orders Ending Illegal Discrimination And Restoring Merit-Based Opportunity and Ending Radical And Wasteful Government DEI Programs And Preferencing. The orders banned discrimination in the name of “diversity” across the government and directed the attorney general to enforce anti-discrimination law accordingly.
Following these orders, the Smithsonian removed its main webpage on “Talking About Race” sometime between late February and early March, according to internet archives. The page now redirects to “teaching and learning” resources.
“The Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture is in the process of integrating content from the ‘Talking About Race’ portal into our flagship website,” a museum representative told The Federalist. “This transition is part of our ongoing efforts to enhance the digital experience for the more than 6 million online visitors we serve around the world each year.”
The Federalist repeatedly asked to confirm whether the museum would republish these materials on another site, but the representatives did not respond in time for publication. The Federalist also asked the White House if these webpages had been removed, and if the materials violated Trump’s executive order.
“President Trump’s executive orders directed the removal of content that divides and pits Americans against one another based on race,” Davis Ingle, a spokesman for the White House, told The Federalist. “The President will continue working to ensure that the Smithsonian removes all improper ideology and once again unites and instills pride in all Americans regarding our great history.”
Talking About Race
The project, in the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture, promoted racist stereotypes about white people. In 2020, the museum drew fire for its graphic claiming “common characteristics of most U.S. White people” include “master and control nature,” “aggressiveness and extroversion,” “heavy value on ownership of goods, space, property,” and “steak and potatoes; ‘bland is best,’” as The Federalist’s Jordan Boyd reported at the time.
This project was so egregious that Republican Sen. Josh Hawley demanded answers, and Smithsonian Secretary Lonnie Bunch conceded that the “specific chart … did not contribute to productive, informed conversations,” as The Federalist’s Tristan Justice reported. The document in question had been removed at the time.
But even after this exchange, the Smithsonian continued to maintain its “Talking About Race” project until recently.
The museum still hosted a page on “Whiteness” until at least March 4, targeting supposed “white-dominant culture,” “white privilege,” and “microaggressions.”
“Whiteness is also at the core of understanding race in America. Whiteness and the normalization of white racial identity throughout America’s history have created a culture where nonwhite persons are seen as inferior or abnormal,” the webpage read, according to an archive.
The Smithsonian claimed that “[i]f you identify as white, acknowledging your white racial identity and its privileges is a crucial step to help end racism.” It even cited the queen of DEI herself, Robin DiAngelo, to describe “white fragility“: “Since white people ‘live in a social environment that insulates them from race-based stress,’ whites are rarely challenged and have less of a tolerance to race-based stress.”
“For white people doing anti-racist and social justice work, the first meaningful step should be to recognize their fragility around racial issues and build their emotional stamina,” reads an archive of the webpage. “Besides your own internal reflection, processing, and daily commitment to anti-racist work, try participating in affinity groups, or caucuses.”
The project also encouraged “person[s] committed to equity” to learn their “group identities,” claiming it could “make our society more equitable and can be a catalyst for change.” It taught parents to believe “my child can be an agent of change against racial inequity” and to build “healthy racial identity” within youth. It also told teachers to cultivate “students’ racial consciousness” and to “develop their racial awareness.”
The Smithsonian’s project was a textbook exercise of critical race theory: teaching youth to view themselves through the lens of group identity rather than as individuals, and dividing society between oppressors and oppressed. By creating discontent — and suggesting one’s nation is evil at the most foundational level — Marxist activists hope to spark conflict and radical change for their own ends.
While the exact cause is unclear, these webpages were shut down after Trump’s executive orders against race-based discrimination. Perhaps someone realized the new administration would not take this racist, anti-American ideology lightly.
Logan Washburn is a staff writer covering election integrity. He is a spring 2025 fellow of The College Fix. He graduated from Hillsdale College, served as Christopher Rufo’s editorial assistant, and has bylines in The Wall Street Journal, The Tennessean, and The Daily Caller. Logan is from Central Oregon but now lives in rural Michigan.
