The city of Philadelphia filed a federal lawsuit on Thursday against the Trump administration over the National Parks Service’s removal of the slavery memorial at the President’s House in the city — an exhibit that honored the lives of the nine people enslaved there by George Washington.
The complaint, which was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, against the National Parks Service (NPS) and the U.S. Department of Interior, which oversees NPS. The lawsuit also names Interior Sec. Doug Burgum and NPS Acting Director Jessica Bowron.
The city argues that by removing the panels telling the stories of the enslaved people “without notice,” NPS violated various congressional laws, as well as a 2006 agreement NPS made with the city and laid out the terms for building the exhibit, which opened to the public in 2010.
National Park Service staffers are pictured removing panels that are park of the “Freedom and Slavery in the Making of a New Nation” exhibit at the President’s House in Philadelphia.
WPVI
“Defendants violated the agreements with the City and have not provided any rationale for their abrupt change in course, rendering their actions arbitrary and capricious and not in accordance with law,” the complaint alleges.
The lawsuit argues that because the city of Philadelphia had an “equal right” under the 2006 agreement to “approve the final design” of the President’s House Project, the city should also have the authority to review and approve any changes to the exhibit.
“The City’s right to approve the exhibit’s final design, including the interpretive displays, would be meaningless if the NPS could at any time later change or remove the displays without the City’s approval,” the lawsuit states.
A spokesperson for the Department of the Interior told ABC News in a statement on Friday that the removal of the slavery exhibit is a move that complies with President Donald Trump’s March 27, 2025 executive order, “Restoring Truth and Sanity to American History,” which directed the Interior Department to remove “divisive, race-centered ideology” and narratives from federal cultural institutions.
“All federal agencies are to review interpretive materials to ensure accuracy, honesty, and alignment with shared national values. Following completion of the required review, the National Park Service is now taking appropriate action in accordance with the [Executive] Order,” the department spokesperson said.
The spokesperson also criticized the city’s policies and its filing of “frivolous lawsuits in the hopes of demeaning our brave Founding Fathers who set the brilliant road map for the greatest country in the world — the United States of America.”
President’s House Site, Memorial Wall. The names of the nine enslaved members of President Washington’s household who lived at this site.
NPS
The complaint alleges that by removing the panels, NPS and the Interior Department violated the Administrative Procedure Act (APA) of 1946, which requires federal agencies to publish proposals and provide opportunities for public comment regarding agency actions.
Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle Parker addressed the lawsuit during a Friday press conference, where she was asked by a reporter to respond to the exhibit’s removal.
“Let me affirm for the residents of the city of Philadelphia that there is a cooperative agreement between the city and the federal government that dates back to 2006. That agreement requires parties to meet and confer if there are to be any changes made to an exhibit,” Parker said, adding that her office will keep the public posted as legal action moves forward.
ABC News reached out to Parker’s office for further comment.
Through the lawsuit, the city of Philadelphia seeks a court order restoring the slavery memorial, a preliminary injunction to block other potential changes to the President’s House and a permanent injunction blocking further changes to the exhibit.