ICOM-US Backs Smithsonian Against Trump Pressure

The US branch of the International Council of Museums (ICOM) has backed the Smithsonian Institution following congressional hearings and a series of interventions by Donald Trump’s administration targeting its museums.

In a statement published on 11 August, ICOM-US said it supported the Smithsonian’s leadership and staff following recent congressional hearings and government action targeting the institution.

“Museums exist not to end conversations, but to begin them,” the organisation said, adding that public trust in museums rests on “scholarship, professional expertise, ethical practice, and intellectual integrity”.

The Trump administration has increasingly focused its criticism on the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History. A White House report published in July accused the museum of “ideological capture” and claimed its leadership had used American history to advance social justice rather than present it as a shared national inheritance.

On 24 July, Trump directed federal officials to install temporary signs outside the museum informing visitors of the report’s findings and directing them towards what the administration called “accurate information” about American history.

ICOM adopted the first major revision of its Code of Ethics for Museums in more than 20 years in June. The new code says museums should retain control over the content of their exhibitions and publications and “resist financial or political influence”. ICOM-US cited the revised code in its statement, saying it reaffirmed the importance of institutional independence and public accountability.

The American Alliance of Museums (AAM) issued its own statement in July defending the independence of the Smithsonian and other US museums, criticising the Trump administration’s “continued attacks” and warning against efforts to politicise how museums present history, art, science and culture.