America's 250th birthday plans at risk amid DOGE cost-cutting

WASHINGTON - America will soon turn 250 years old and celebrations are being planned to commemorate the anniversary. 

However, the planned itinerary is at risk of being significantly scaled back or canceled because of federal funding cuts under President Donald Trump's administration, according to multiple state humanities councils across the country.

How cuts could impact the celebration

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The councils have been working on programming for America250, an initiative marking the milestone anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence in 1776. But the Republican administration's deep cost-cutting effort across the federal government has led the National Endowment for the Humanities to cancel its grants for state humanities councils. That has left them with less money for programming to plan for the celebration, ranging from themed K-12 school curriculums to special events at public libraries.

The humanities funding cuts come as Trump has targeted cultural establishments from the Smithsonian Institution to the Institute of Museum and Library Services in executive orders. The moves are part of his goals to downsize the federal government and end initiatives seen as promoting diversity, equity and inclusion. The order directed at the Smithsonian, for example, said it has "come under the influence of a divisive, race-centered ideology."

This month, the Trump administration's Department of Governmental Efficiency, overseen by billionaire Trump adviser Elon Musk, placed roughly 80% of NEH staff members on administrative leave, according to the Federation of State Humanities Councils.

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The NEH also sent letters to state humanities councils across the country saying their federal grants had been terminated. The halt in funding came during the middle of the fiscal year for thousands of organizations and is causing widespread changes in their programs, including planning for the 250th anniversary.

The busts of U.S. presidents George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt and Abraham Lincoln tower over the Black Hills at Mount Rushmore National Monument on July 01, 2020 in Keystone, South Dakota. (Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images)

Georgia Humanities, the state's humanities council, has been planning various events for the 250th anniversary, said president Mary McCartin Wearn.

They include a statewide "digital book club" in partnership with the state's public library service, a program for speakers to travel across the state to give lectures and presentations, and a Smithsonian Institution program known as Museum on Main Street, which brings traveling exhibits to small towns and rural areas.

But the council has now lost $740,000 in federal funding that had been awarded to it, placing those programs in jeopardy, said McCartin Wearn, who has been fielding calls and emails from people asking about the status of their programming for the anniversary events.

What they're saying:

"I cannot imagine how we’re supposed to have a national commemoration that’s meaningful for people where they live without the humanities being supported," said Gabrielle Lyon, executive director of Illinois Humanities, the state's humanities council.

"What is it going to mean for small towns and rural communities who were expecting the possibility of having grants to do special exhibits, special commemorations, their own programs, and speakers and performers? All of that is now extremely tenuous. And those are exactly the kinds of things people have been looking forward to."

How to get involved in America’s semiquincentennial celebration

What you can do:

The America250 commission has already enlisted the neighborhood app Nextdoor and the YWCA, the nation’s oldest and largest women’s organization, as partners for the anniversary celebration. 

Over the next three years, America250 plans to host commemorative events in every U.S. state and territory.

"We hope to have this be a sea-to-shining-sea perspective," Rios said. "It's not about a coast, it's not about one area. It is about how to have this be about ‘Main Street’ and really a grassroots effort." 

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America250 is encouraging Americans "from all walks of life" to share their story through photos, videos, artwork, poems, songs and more, on its official website. 

Rios, who will be in attendance at the July 4th Brewers vs. Cubs game in Milwaukee to kick off the campaign, said she hopes to meet as many people as possible and hear how they would like to celebrate.

"I want to hear firsthand, especially from kids," Rios said. "Tell us your story. How do you want to participate? And most importantly, how should we be planning this? We want this public engagement effort to really inform us on exactly how we should be putting this planning process in place.

"I want to hear what it means to be American, and I want to hear how we should be planning this once in a lifetime – well, I guess for me, it's twice in a lifetime – celebration and commemoration."