Will Native Presence at Alcatraz by removed or covered up by Trump Administration?

Update on Sept 27, 2025: At the end of this original post on June 14, 2025, I am adding changes on the Alcatraz website. 

On June 13, 2025 The New York Times published an article titled National Parks Are Told to Delete Content that 'Disparages Americans.' Here's the first four paragraphs of the article by Lisa Friedman:

The Interior Department plans to remove or cover up all “inappropriate content” at national parks and sites by Sept. 17 and is asking the park visitors to report any “negative” information about past or living Americans, according to internal documents.

It’s a move that historians worry could lead to the erasure of history involving gay and transgender figures, civil rights struggles and other subjects deemed improper by the Trump administration.

Staff at the National Park Service, which is part of the Interior Department, were instructed to post QR codes and signs at all 433 national parks, monuments and historic sites by Friday asking visitors to flag anything they think should be changed, from a plaque to a park ranger’s tour to a film at a visitor’s center.

Leaders at the park service would then review concerns about anything that “inappropriately disparages Americans past or living (including persons living in colonial times),” according to slides presented this week at a meeting with park superintendents. By Sept. 17, “all inappropriate content” would be removed or covered, according to the presentation.

Note the second paragraph says "other subjects." It isn't the first time Native peoples have been characterized by the media as "other." The fourth paragraph says that "inappropriate content" must be removed or covered by September 17th. I wonder what will happen at Alcatraz? 

I went over to the National Park Service page on Alcatraz and got these screen caps. Easy enough to delete web pages but what will they do with the writing on walls and on the water tower? Below are screen captures I did today, from the website.

This one is on the home page:

Scroll down and you'll see this one. Note the "Last updated" timestamp:

Clicking through the image above you'll go to the page that has these options:

What will be on the website between now and September 17th? If you click through those options you'll see many photos of Native statements declaring our presence and about Indian Land. Will those be painted over? Covered up? Or will a court pause these actions? We'll see.   

Update on September 27, 2025 

Since my initial post (above on June 14) I have been checking the website to see if changes have been made. To best show the changes, I am places images next to each other as follows: 

With the exception of the section title being in bold now, the opening paragraph is unchanged:

In June when I scrolled down the page, there was an array of options to click through. On the bottom right was one called Red Power: American Indian Occupation. It has now been replaced with one called Welcome to Indian Land. Here they are:

Back in June when I clicked on the Red Power image, I could watch a video called Perspectives 50 Years Later, or click on a section called About Red Power that had several options within it. Or I could click on the Virtual Exhibition or Commemorative Events, each which had several options, too. Back in June, I shared screen shots of those images. 

Today when I clicked on Welcome to Indian Land, the options are different. I go right to a screen that tells me there is an exhibit opening in September. It is called "Welcome to Indian Land: Resistance, Resilience, & Activism." When I scrolled down I saw a section called "Navigate Welcome to Indian Land. There's two click-through options:

When I clicked through the Virtual Exhibition I saw sections called "We Are Still Here," and "Why Alcatraz?" and "And End... And a Beginning." I don't remember these sections but as I read through them now, they have the sort of language that I think is necessary. Examples:

• "Native peoples were forcibly relocated..."
• "...colonization had a disastrous impact."
• "Native Americans were imprisoned here for resisting or rebelling against the U.S. government"
• "... invaders broke all government treaties with tribes and stole Indian territory for its valuable natural resources."
• "the government moved to seize more lands."
  
  
  

When I clicked through the Frequently Asked Questions, I see one that may explain why the erasures we're seeing across the country are not happening here. The question is "How does the exhibit fit into the GCNRA's legislation and strategic vision?" GGNRA is the Golden Gate National Recreation Area. Here's the answer to that question:

Alcatraz Island is a site within the Golden Gate National Recreation Area. As referenced in the GGNRA’s Foundation Document, Alcatraz Island is significant partly because of the occupation, which helped ignite the movement for American Indian self-determination. By interpreting this moment in history, the site provides a powerful opportunity to encourage visitors to contemplate their personal views on freedom and civil rights. 

 

Theme 5 of GGNRA's Long Range Interpretive Plan states, "Layers of history within the park challenges us to contemplate the meaning of freedom, justice and equality...the island provides an opportunity to consider the contrasting views on human rights and rehabilitation, as well as civil rights movements and role of political protest."

Golden Gate National Recreation Area is a proud member of the International Coalition of Sites of Conscience. Sites of Conscience enable visitors to make connections between the past struggles and related human rights issues of today. The coalition's goal is to connect past and present to envision a more just and humane future.

I wonder if the island being located within the Golden Gate National Recreation Area--and it being a member of the International Coalition of Sites of Conscience--providing the site a measure of protection from the federal government efforts to whitewash history? I don't know, but I'll keep my eye on the page and see if there are additional changes as time progresses.