Harriet Tubman’s great-great-great-grandniece is “devastated” by the National Park Service’s decision to soften its language about the Underground Railroad on its website in February.
“It tore me apart when I saw the news clip flash across my phone,” Rita Daniels told NBC News.
Among the changes made to the webpage was the replacement of a large image of Tubman with one featuring five postage stamps highlighting “Black/white cooperation” and featuring Tubman among abolitionists of both races. Additionally, the description of the Underground Railroad was revised—shifting from “the resistance to enslavement through escape and flight” to language that downplays slavery, framing it instead as part of the “American civil rights movement” that bridged “the divides of race.”
The changes follow an executive order from President Donald Trump, which directed the Smithsonian Institution to eliminate “divisive narratives.” A review of National Park Service websites—one of the leading agencies responsible for preserving U.S. history—revealed that since Trump’s inauguration in late January, dozens of pages have been edited to downplay some of the nation’s darkest historical moments.
Among them include the agency’s nods to Tubman—someone Daniels has worked to properly honor since discovering as a young girl that she was related to the civil rights icon. Growing up in Auburn, New York, where Tubman settled in 1859 after escaping slavery in Maryland, Daniels remembers school materials labeling Tubman as “a thief.”
“It said she stole slaves, that there was a bounty on her head, those kind of things,” she said.
When Daniels shared what she had read with her mother, she learned the claims were untrue and about their ancestral lineage. From that moment on, Daniels has leaned on Tubman’s legacy for inspiration and dedicated her life to preserving her story.
She co-authored a book about Tubman’s life and founded the Harriet Tubman Learning Center to educate others about the true history and impact of the iconic freedom fighter. Now, witnessing the National Park Service seemingly dilute her aunt’s trailblazing legacy is deeply painful to Daniels.
“I was just basically shocked and hurt at the same time,” she said. “Most of my adult life, I pretty much wanted to make sure that people know that her story is a critical part of Black history, which is American history.”
The update was among numerous changes made to government websites amid the Trump administration’s sweeping effort to remove references to diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI).
“My question is: Why do they want to erase our Black history?” Daniels asked. “Why are we such a threat to certain Americans? They want to remove or ignore very reputable Americans, Black Americans? Why? The answer is racism.”
After news of the website changes spread, the National Park Service issued a statement on April 7, clarifying that the page had been removed “without approval” from senior leadership and that the original version was “immediately restored.”
“This is the kind of impact Harriett Tubman had on many people, not just me,” Daniels said. “And they want to erase that? No. She’s too important to our family and to American history to just be pushed aside. They can’t call what she’s done DEI.”
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