Muir Woods sign fight enters new chapter as Trump appeals ruling
The saga of a hotly contested Muir Woods exhibit has reignited. Titled "History Under Construction," the exhibit was the first casualty of a Trump administration directive targeting "improper ideology" last July because it featured amended sections acknowledging Indigenous people, women's efforts and racism in the park's history.
On Friday, a judge ordered the government to restore signs that had been removed at Muir Woods and other national park sites across the country and also halted any future actions. The ruling came from Angel Kelley of the U.S. District Court of Massachusetts, who wrote: "History cannot be faithfully told while excluding the experiences of communities whose contributions, struggles, and achievements form an important part of our Nation's story." The 63-page decision required the government to restore the removed or altered materials within three weeks and submit regular process reports to the court.
The celebration was short-lived, however.
In a statement shared with SFGATE on Wednesday, a spokesperson for the U.S. Department of the Interior confirmed that the government is pushing back on the decision.
"The Department has appealed," reads the statement. "Through President Trump, we have encouraged Americans to visit our cultural and historic sites and engage in meaningful conversations about the moments that have shaped our country. By telling the full story, every triumph, every challenge and every step towards a more perfect union we strengthen our shared understanding and ensure that future generations inherit not just the land we love, but the truth of the journey that brought us here."
The National Parks Conservation Association, American Association for State and Local History, Association of National Park Rangers and Coalition to Protect America's National Parks brought the case in March, a year after the administration's executive order, "Restoring Truth and Sanity to American History." The effects of the executive order rippled across the country, leading to the removal of the rainbow flag at Stonewall National Monument and the erasure of a slavery exhibit at President's House in Philadelphia.
The most recent move aligns with an earlier message from the Department of the Interior. "This ruling is from a liberal activist judge," a spokesperson said in a statement emailed to SFGATE on Saturday.
California editor Tessa McLean contributed to this story.
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This story was originally published June 17, 2026 at 7:17 PM.