The Philadelphia Bar Association has joined the Barristers’ Association of Philadelphia and the Howard University School of Law in their amicus brief urging the U.S. Third Circuit Court of Appeals to uphold a lower court’s preliminary injunction ordering the restoration of panels and videos depicting the history of slavery at the President’s House site on Independence Mall.
“This moment demands moral clarity. Removing the stories of enslaved people from a site built to tell their truth is not a neutral administrative decision – it is an act of erasure,” said Samantha Fitzpatrick, president of the Barristers’ Association of Philadelphia. “Activists fought to ensure that the President’s House reflects the full reality of our nation’s origins. We will not allow those hard‑won truths to be dismantled.
The exhibit is built on the site of George Washington’s presidential residence in Philadelphia and memorializes the nine enslaved people who lived at the residence and discusses Washington’s connection to slavery in the United States. The exhibit opened in 2010 was created as part of a cooperative agreement between the City of Philadelphia and the National Park Service but was removed by the Park Service in January. The City of Philadelphia filed a lawsuit over the removal of the exhibit, calling for its immediate return.
“The Philadelphia Bar Association speaks out to defend the core democratic principles that define our nation. Central among them is the preservation of an accurate and complete historical record, and the First Amendment right of the public to receive information free from viewpoint-based government suppression,” Philadelphia Bar Association Chancellor Ezra Wohlgelernter and Chancellor-Elect Kristine L. Calalang said. “Law is grounded in truth, and so should be the presentation of our American history, including its most difficult and painful chapters. Efforts to erase or sanitize the historical record undermine the constitutional principles upon which our nation was founded and erode the public’s trust in our institutions. The Philadelphia Bar Association is proud to advocate for the protection of these principles and join the Barristers' Association of Philadelphia and Howard University School of Law as amicus curiae.”
In the amicus brief, the three organizations express concern that the removal of the exhibit is part of a “broader, ideologically driven effort” by the federal government to remove exhibits nationwide that commemorate African American history, including the history of slavery, resistance to enslavement, segregation, and the civil rights movement.
“By eliminating exhibits that document slavery and segregation, the government impairs the public’s ability to engage with a complete and accurate account of American history and diminishes the historical context that is essential to understanding the Nation’s development,” the brief says. “Therefore, these actions not only harm the public at large, but they impose a disproportionate burden on African American communities, depriving them of public access to their history.”
The amicus brief further argues that the National Park Serviced exceeded its authority in removing the President’s House exhibits, violating legislation passed by Congress in 1998 to create lasting national memorials to educate the public about the actions of people connected to the Underground Railroad.
The U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania granted a preliminary injunction to the City in February and ordered the federal government to restore the exhibit while the lawsuit proceeds. Parts of that order were later paused by the Third Circuit Court of Appeals, but the federal government is prohibited from making any changes to the site without the agreement of the City. The Third Circuit is expected to hear oral arguments in the Justice Department’s appeal of the injunction on June 2.
“Philadelphia is a city that understands the cost of silence. We know what happens when the stories of Black people are pushed to the margins,” Fitzpatrick said. “The courts must make clear that the federal government cannot rewrite history to suit political preferences.”
Read the full brief here.
