The National Endowment for the Humanities, which supports museums and historical sites, will redirect funds to the president’s planned patriotic sculpture garden.
The National Endowment for the Humanities intends to redirect some of its funding to build President Trump’s proposed National Garden of American Heroes, as part of a reorientation toward the president’s priorities of celebrating patriotic history, according to three people who attended a meeting on Wednesday where the plans were discussed.
Last week, the agency, the main federal funder of the humanities, abruptly canceled more than 85 percent of its existing grants, which support museums, historical sites and scholarly and community projects across the country. The moves outraged supporters of the humanities, and stirred speculation about whether the agency would survive.
At the meeting on Wednesday, the agency’s acting chair, Michael McDonald, told its 24-member advisory council that the endowment would pivot to supporting the White House’s agenda, according to the three attendees, who were granted anonymity because they were not authorized to describe a confidential meeting. In particular, they were told, the agency would support Mr. Trump’s planned patriotic sculpture garden and the broader celebration of the 250th anniversary of American independence on July 4, 2026.
Mr. Trump first proposed the sculpture garden in July 2020, shortly after delivering a fiery political speech at Mount Rushmore in which he decried the vandalism of statues across the country during racial justice protests set off by the murder of George Floyd.
“Our nation is witnessing a merciless campaign to wipe out our history, defame our heroes, erase our values and indoctrinate our children,” Mr. Trump said.
In an executive order, he directed the construction of a National Garden of American Heroes, to be built “on a site of natural beauty that enables visitors to enjoy nature, walk among the statues, and be inspired to learn about great figures of America’s history.” All would be depicted in a “realistic” fashion, with no abstract or modernist sculpture allowed.