Judge orders Trump administration to 'mitigate' further 'damage' to Philly slavery exhibit panels
PHILADELPHIA -- U.S. District Judge Cynthia Rufe, who is overseeing Philadelphia's federal lawsuit against the Trump administration over the removal of a slavery exhibit at the President's House, ordered the federal government to "mitigate any further deterioration or damage" to the exhibit's panels after inspecting their condition.
Rufe filed an inspection report on Monday evening, where she wrote that the 34 panels, both glass and metal, are stored in a "secure" place at the National Constitution Center and have not been "destroyed," but Rufe noted that some panels "exhibited damage."
"Still to be determined by the Court is the extent of any damage and the integrity of the exhibits regarding their amenability to being restored to their original condition," Rufe wrote.
Counsel for the Trump administration and for the city of Philadelphia attended the inspection, after which Rufe told reporters that she observed some "marks" on the panels but could not determine when or how they were made.
The panels, which were removed by the National Parks Service on Jan. 22, tell the stories of the nine enslaved Africans who were held by President George Washington at the President's House, an open-air outdoor exhibit and memorial at Independence National Historical Park that was built where Washington's mansion originally stood.
The memorial honors the lives of Austin, Christopher Sheels, Giles, Hercules, Joe Richardson, Moll, Oney Judge, Paris and Richmond, all of whom were held at the site by Washington.
Rufe ordered the federal government on Monday to "securely store all removed panels and to mitigate any further deterioration or damage."
During a hearing on Friday, Rufe said that she planned to inspect the panels as she considers whether NPS's removal caused "irreparable harm" as she considers a motion for a preliminary injunction filed by the city of Philadelphia. The injunction would block the Trump administration from making any further changes to the President's House as the lawsuit moves forward.
Rufe filed a post-hearing order on Monday, barring any further "removal and/or destruction of the President's House" site "until further order from the court."
Avenging the Ancestors Coalition, an advocacy group founded in 2002 by attorney Michael Coard, launched the 2002 campaign to urge the city to include a slavery memorial in the building of the President's House. The group, which filed a motion to file an amicus brief in support of the city's lawsuit, also participated in the inspection.
Coard told reporters on Monday that seeing the panels stored in a room against a wall was "completely disrespectful, demoralizing, defiling."
"There were scratches and marks on several of the 34 items we saw, there was no cushioning. They were up against the wall. They were on the cement floor," Coard said. "Had they slipped, the glass items would have fallen to the ground."
"I can't say, being quite candid, that there was any damage, there was no damage, but there was desecration, and for me, it's the same thing," Coard said.
Asked how he defines "desecration," Coard said, "The Sixth and Market Street site where America's first White House stood is historical holy ground. And anytime you defile holy ground, you desecrate it."
The lawsuit
The city of Philadelphia filed a complaint in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania on Feb. 22, naming the National Parks Service (NPS) and the U.S. Department of Interior, which oversees NPS, as defendants. The lawsuit also names Interior Sec. Doug Burgum and NPS Acting Director Jessica Bowron.
The city argues in the lawsuit that by removing the panels telling the stories of the nine enslaved people "without notice," NPS violated various congressional laws, as well as the cooperative agreement NPS made with the city and laid out the terms for building the exhibit.
The city is seeking a permanent injunction that would restore the panels, which are the heart of the slavery memorial at the President's House -- an exhibit born out of grassroots community activism that opened in 2010 following robust community input and facilitated by a cooperative agreement between the city of Philadelphia and the National Parks Service.
Counsel for the federal government argued during Friday's hearing that the "rights" of the exhibit were "transferred" to NPS so the agency does not have to "confer" with anyone to make changes. The argument drew a sharp rebuke from Rufe.
"It would seem to me, there has to be some acknowledgement and respect for history," Rufe said during the hearing.
Asked about the lawsuit, a spokesperson for the Department of the Interior told ABC News in a statement on Feb. 23 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 of Interior spokesperson told ABC News.
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."
