Letter from the Guest Editor

Knowledge, like democracy, is fragile. According to the British scholar Richard Overden, author of Burning the Books, the first recorded evidence of the vindictive destruction of a people’s accumulated knowledge occurred in 612 BCE when a coalition of Babylonians, Medes, and Scythians demolished the great library of Ashurbanipal in Nineveh, Assyria. Fortunately, the fire that destroyed the library helped preserve the cuneiform clay tablets containing much of this knowledge, which archaeologists would eventually excavate in the mid-nineteenth century. The British Museum now houses 28,000 of them. Ovenden explains: “The peoples of Assyria and their neighbouring civilisations had a well-developed culture of documentation and have passed down to us a rich intellectual inheritance.”1As I write this on May 5, 2025, the 47th president of the United States, Donald Trump, has issued executive orders eliminating federal funding for National History Day, the National Endowment for the Humanities, the National Endowment for the Arts, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (PBS and NPR), and the Institute of Museum and Library Services. The president also wants to eradicate what he and his followers view as “anti-American ideology” by requiring that the nation’s cultural institutions rewrite U.S. history to comply with an imaginary, false narrative while simultaneously jettisoning thousands of nonpartisan civil service employees.2 Included in these orders are the Smithsonian Institution’s history and art museums and research centers, the National Gallery of Art, the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, the National Park Service, other relevant federal agencies, and nationwide educational institutions that receive federal funding.3 Although several of the executive orders relating to education and culture are being challenged, there is no guarantee that by the time this letter is published more national treasures will escape Trump’s pen.The administration’s actions threaten and diminish us as individuals and as historians. They threaten and diminish our society. We are uncertain if we can trust how the National Archives and Library of Congress will be administered. Will documents designated for preservation be thrown out, uncatalogued, or stolen? Will precious books, manuscripts, films, audio recordings, prints, and photographs be lost? Can we now trust the “data” emanating from the various departments of the government, from economic statistics to weather forecasting? As a historian, retired university professor, and former public historian who also worked for the Smithsonian Institution and the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation, I worry about these losses, the imbalance within the three separate and equal branches of government, and the abandonment of our Constitution.In addition, I worry about our students. With the continued reduction of the teaching of history courses throughout our schools and universities, what “version” of history will students be forced to learn? Will they be eager to learn and develop a passion for the study of history? For example, since 1974, middle school and high school students have participated in National History Day, a yearlong project, funded in part by the federal government, that encourages students to thoroughly research, write, and submit papers, documentary films, websites, or theatrical productions based upon the specific year’s theme. The fortuitously appropriate 2024–25 contest theme is “Rights and Responsibilities in History.”4 In August 2024, students nationwide selected a specific topic relevant to the theme, chose a method of presentation, and began working weekly with their teachers’ supervision. For the contest, students undertake primary and secondary source research, conduct interviews, find visual print and film sources relevant to their topics, and prepare a 500-word statement of purpose, methodology, and findings that is accompanied by a detailed annotated bibliography. They must be able to answer numerous questions about their projects.Juried regional competitions commenced in each state by April 2025. By the first week of May, those who won their regional competitions advanced to their state’s competition. In June, students chosen to represent their states will gather at the University of Maryland for a weeklong competition and celebration of history. Sadly, because Trump cut the federal funds for National History Day, many students have been unable to participate this year. Although the organization appealed for donations, students, teachers, and their schools nationwide were forced to withdraw from the competition.Recently, I had the opportunity to observe and question students practicing for their state competitions. Their topics included: the evolution of U.S. disability rights; the treatment of students attending Native American boarding schools; the history and development of the treatment of veterans for shell shock / PTSD; and the health and environment challenges and protests of the “Radium Girls” who contributed to the efforts for greater workplace safety regulations. These hardworking history students were well aware of the changes thrust upon society by the current administration’s executive orders and challenges to good governance. It was heartwarming and inspiring to observe their dedication and enthusiasm.Those students—all students—are the reason we cannot succumb to despair. We must continue to use our pens and our voices to speak up about the destruction of our knowledge, our wonderfully varied and rich culture, and our democracy.