A federal judge on Friday ordered the administration to restore national park exhibits altered under an order, and a separate judge ordered President Donald Trump's name removed from the Kennedy Center by noon Saturday.
U.S. District Judge Angel Kelley in Massachusetts issued a preliminary injunction that requires the administration to restore changes already made at locations nationwide and to pause any additional alterations, saying the plaintiffs have shown the efforts are meant "to rewrite the Nation's history with a white-out pen."
Kelley also said the administration must provide a status report every week and has 21 days to "restore and reinstall all interpretive materials at park sites managed by the NPS that, pursuant to the Secretary's Order, have been altered, removed, or damaged in the process of such removal since May 20, 2025."
The injunction responds to a February lawsuit filed by conservation and historical organizations challenging National Park Service policies after an executive order titled "Restoring Truth and Sanity to American History" in March 2025 directed parks not to display elements that "inappropriately disparage Americans past or living."
Those organizations said the policies forced removal of dozens of exhibits, including at Independence National Historical Park where exhibits on the lives of nine people enslaved at the site in the 1790s under George Washington were removed; a sign at Sunset Crater Volcano National Monument that showed a visitor holding a Pride flag; and films on labor history at Lowell National Historical Park. Alan Spears, senior director for cultural resources for the National Parks Conservation Association, said the ruling will help protect national parks from the administration's effort "to erase history and science at these one-of-a-kind places." Bill Wade, executive director for the Association of National Park Rangers, said it is good news for National Parks employees who "have prided themselves for being able to provide truthful, accurate and unbiased information."
The Justice Department filed a certification in federal court one hour before a judge's Saturday noon deadline saying President Donald Trump's name has been "removed" from "all physical signage on the Kennedy Center building and grounds." The department had sought a 12-hour extension to noon on June 13, saying work "has been delayed because of thunderstorms in the District of Columbia that presented safety concerns for workers."
Construction workers began removing lettering early Saturday that had been added in December and inserted Trump's name before "The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts," and several dozen attendees gathered and cheered as workers prepared to take the name off the building. The center's website and YouTube page had already reverted to prior Kennedy Center branding.
U.S. District Judge Christopher Cooper wrote on May 29 that "Congress gave the Kennedy Center its name, and only Congress can change it," and his May ruling also blocked a planned two-year closure the center had sought for renovations. DOJ lawyers said in a filing that "the removal work is presently ongoing, and Defendants expect it will conclude in the early hours of the morning of June 13, 2026."
The rebranding had been approved by a board handpicked by the president, and the Kennedy Center told courts that taking the name off would force the return of "hundreds of millions of dollars" the center has raised because of an unannounced bylaw change. The appeals court denied the center's request for a pause. Lawyers for Democratic Rep. Joyce Beatty of Ohio, the ex officio board member who filed the suit, said the center's funding argument was "meritless," and Beatty said, "Today's victory is the beginning of returning the Kennedy Center to the American people. The rule of law prevailed, and that is worth celebrating. Let this send a message across the country: when we stand up, fight back, and defend our democracy, we can win. This is just the beginning."