John Swain
👤 PersonAppearances Over Time
Podcast Appearances
One of the cases that really leapt out was the Little Rock Nine. So people may remember in the 1950s, nine brave young African-American students walked through an angry mob to integrate their high school in Arkansas.
One of the cases that really leapt out was the Little Rock Nine. So people may remember in the 1950s, nine brave young African-American students walked through an angry mob to integrate their high school in Arkansas.
The Little Rock High School where this happened is now a national parks monument, essentially. It's a site, an historic site, and it has a web presence. And we found that on like half a dozen pages on their website, a reference that had been there to the fact that the Little Rock Nine had opened doors for people around the world seeking equality and education. had been changed to just education.
The Little Rock High School where this happened is now a national parks monument, essentially. It's a site, an historic site, and it has a web presence. And we found that on like half a dozen pages on their website, a reference that had been there to the fact that the Little Rock Nine had opened doors for people around the world seeking equality and education. had been changed to just education.
The Little Rock High School where this happened is now a national parks monument, essentially. It's a site, an historic site, and it has a web presence. And we found that on like half a dozen pages on their website, a reference that had been there to the fact that the Little Rock Nine had opened doors for people around the world seeking equality and education. had been changed to just education.
So their pursuit of equality and the opening doors to other people pursuing equality had just been erased. And I called one of them, Elizabeth Eckford. She appears in some of the very memorable photography from the time. And I just talked her through it and said what was happening to the website. And she was shocked. She said they were trying to rewrite history.
So their pursuit of equality and the opening doors to other people pursuing equality had just been erased. And I called one of them, Elizabeth Eckford. She appears in some of the very memorable photography from the time. And I just talked her through it and said what was happening to the website. And she was shocked. She said they were trying to rewrite history.
So their pursuit of equality and the opening doors to other people pursuing equality had just been erased. And I called one of them, Elizabeth Eckford. She appears in some of the very memorable photography from the time. And I just talked her through it and said what was happening to the website. And she was shocked. She said they were trying to rewrite history.
And the true racial reconciliation would never come until the painful past and the wrongs of the past were acknowledged.
And the true racial reconciliation would never come until the painful past and the wrongs of the past were acknowledged.
And the true racial reconciliation would never come until the painful past and the wrongs of the past were acknowledged.
I did speak with some current employees, and it was a couple of things. First, they said that the Park Service is overseen by the Department of the Interior.
I did speak with some current employees, and it was a couple of things. First, they said that the Park Service is overseen by the Department of the Interior.
I did speak with some current employees, and it was a couple of things. First, they said that the Park Service is overseen by the Department of the Interior.
And they said that early on in this Trump administration, political appointees at the Interior Department had directed senior Park Service people to have their employees scour the websites for potentially problematic content in light of President Trump's executive order.
And they said that early on in this Trump administration, political appointees at the Interior Department had directed senior Park Service people to have their employees scour the websites for potentially problematic content in light of President Trump's executive order.
And they said that early on in this Trump administration, political appointees at the Interior Department had directed senior Park Service people to have their employees scour the websites for potentially problematic content in light of President Trump's executive order.
This was at a time, as people will remember, suddenly tens of thousands of federal employees were being fired from their jobs or their projects were being cut. And I think people were scared that they might lose their job if they didn't do a strong enough job in this request. And so that was one way.
This was at a time, as people will remember, suddenly tens of thousands of federal employees were being fired from their jobs or their projects were being cut. And I think people were scared that they might lose their job if they didn't do a strong enough job in this request. And so that was one way.
This was at a time, as people will remember, suddenly tens of thousands of federal employees were being fired from their jobs or their projects were being cut. And I think people were scared that they might lose their job if they didn't do a strong enough job in this request. And so that was one way.