How the Smithsonian Became the Latest Front in Trump’s Culture War

By Alec MacGillis, ProPublica · September 24, 2026

In November 2021, the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History opened an exhibit called “The Electric Dr. Franklin,” describing “Benjamin Franklin’s pioneering contributions to electrical science.” The exhibit explained that, prior to becoming an abolitionist, he had enslaved people in his household…

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