A federal appeals court temporarily lifted a July 3 deadline requiring the Trump administration to reinstall national park displays addressing topics including slavery and climate change before America’s 250th anniversary.
By yourNEWS Media Newsroom
A federal appeals court ruled Tuesday that the Trump administration does not have to meet a July 3 deadline to restore dozens of national park exhibits removed under a directive targeting displays officials said improperly disparaged Americans.
The unanimous order from a three-judge panel of the 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Boston temporarily paused the deadline set by U.S. District Judge Angel Kelley, who had ordered the National Park Service to reinstall the exhibits before the nation’s 250th anniversary next month.
The displays addressed subjects including slavery and climate change. They were removed after President Donald Trump issued a March 2025 executive order targeting park exhibits that “inappropriately disparage Americans past or living.”
Kelley previously ruled that the removals were part of an unlawful effort by the administration to alter historical interpretation at national parks. She wrote that the administration was trying to “rewrite the nation’s history with a white-out pen.”
Critics of the administration’s directive have accused Trump of seeking to erase or minimize parts of American history from public displays.
The 1st Circuit did not immediately pause Kelley’s broader June 12 ruling blocking Interior Secretary Doug Burgum from implementing Trump’s executive order. The panel said it is still reviewing the administration’s request to put the entire ruling on hold while the appeal moves forward.
The appeals court said it plans to rule “promptly” on whether the broader injunction should remain in effect during the appeal.
The panel was composed of three judges appointed by Democratic presidents.
The underlying lawsuit was filed by groups including the National Parks Conservation Association and the American Association for State and Local History. The plaintiffs challenged the legality of the exhibit removals and argued that the administration’s actions improperly interfered with historical and educational displays in national parks.
In a joint statement, the plaintiffs said the appeals court’s decision to lift the immediate restoration deadline was disappointing.
The ruling gives the Trump administration temporary relief from the fast-approaching deadline while leaving unresolved the broader legal fight over whether the National Park Service must restore the removed exhibits and whether the executive order can remain blocked during the appeal.
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