Republicans demand answers on use of federal funds for ‘woke’ Montpelier exhibits
Ryan King
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EXCLUSIVE — Two Republicans are demanding answers about “woke” influences at President James Madison’s Montpelier and other historical sites.
Reps. Bob Good (R-VA) and Eli Crane (R-AZ) flagged concerns about how exhibits at Montpelier discuss slavery and the country’s founding documents. They also sought answers from the head of the National Trust for Historic Preservation about whether federal funds were used.
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“We urge you to focus on the true life and history of James Madison, rather than succumbing to dishonest, ‘woke,’ and radical anti-American prejudices. We look forward to your prompt response,” the duo wrote in a letter to Jay Clemens, interim president of the National Trust for Historic Preservation, obtained by the Washington Examiner.
Good and Crane underscored that the trust was established to “preserve and protect our nation’s history, as well as perpetuate the American story.” They expressed their befuddlement at how the “sole exhibit focused on the Constitution” perpetuates the notion that it’s a “pro-slavery document.”
“The only exhibit for children aims to teach them about race and slavery and includes a children’s book with graphic images and ‘imagination exercises’ for whites and blacks that encourages children to imagine themselves as the aggressor and to examine their own capacity for evil,” they added.
They cited Washington Examiner reporting that Montpelier’s director of archaeology, Matthew Reeves, “said something to the effect that staff members had no interest in honoring a ‘dead white president and a dead white president’s Constitution.'”
Reeves was also reported as saying he had to act “less like a bulldozer and more like a termite that undermined a building’s foundation, destroying it from within before tearing it down.”
Good and Crane are seeking answers about the lack of exhibits concentrated on Madison’s achievements, the lack of exhibits explaining the importance of the Constitution, and the “restricted funds” used for operating expenses.
“Concerningly, exhibits such as the ones mentioned above seem to have been developed with the help of federal funds,” the congressmen noted.
In tandem with concerns about the exhibits, the congressmen cited documents indicating that Montpelier received a grant to help “anti-racist curriculum” with Albemarle County Public Schools in 2018. They asked about which schools adopted the education program.
Madison, the fourth president of the United States, is viewed as the “Father of the Constitution.”
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The National Trust for Historic Preservation is a congressionally charted nonprofit organization that strives to preserve historic U.S. sites.
The Washington Examiner contacted the group for comment. The congressmen are seeking answers within the next two weeks.