Extensive ‘concerning language’ about mistreatment of Natives flagged at Sitka historical site in Trump-ordered review

Leaked database shows descriptions of forced relocations, warfare, enslavement, mass deaths among those reviewed as part of president’s targeting of ‘anti-American’ content

Visitors examine an exhibit at the Russian Bishop’s House at Sitka National Historical Park. (Sitka National Historical Park photo)

By Mark Sabbatini

Juneau Independent

Numerous panels at Sitka National Historical Park describing historical actions against Alaska Natives have been flagged as "concerning language" needing review under President Donald Trump’s order to remove "anti-American" ideology from sites nationwide, according to an internal U.S. Interior Department database leaked this week.

A "First Peoples Panel" at the park’s Russian Bishop’s House, for example, contains the following language flagged as concerning: "Europeans, including Russians, brought warfare, enslavement, and deadly diseases like smallpox that decimated the population. As of 2021, less than 18 percent of Alaska's population identifies as Alaska Native."

The leak was first reported Monday by The Washington Post, which confirmed the database’s authenticity with current federal employees. At least two public websites have posted the full database and related material.

An index of the material is in an 880-line spreadsheet, with many of the lines containing multiple specific items flagged. The 8.26GB database also contains more than 500 folders of flagged material from various sites.

Among the other panels flagged at the Russian Bishop’s House is one titled "Tlingit Aani," due to a land acknowledgement reading "This house stands on the unceded territories of the Sheet'la Lwaan." Also flagged in the panel is the statement "The history of this land includes a series of actions that attempted to remove the Sheet'ka Kwaan from their land, culture, and language which includes forced relocations under both Russian and American governance."

Staff at the Sitka National Historical Park did not respond to a request Friday by the Juneau Independent for comment. An Interior Department spokesperson, in a statement to Reuters about the leaked database, said "The narrative being advanced is false and these draft, deliberative internal ​documents are not a representation of final action taken by the department."

A report by The Hill states flagged material outside Alaska includes information related to Emmett Till, the Black child who was famously lynched in Mississippi in 1955; a children’s booklet stating Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee “promised to … protect the United States” but later “broke his promise and fought for slavery"; climate change references at Glacier National Park; and materials about Native Americans and climate change at Arches National Park in Utah.

No other Alaska sites appear to have flagged material in the database, with entries for locations such as Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve and Denali National Park and Preserve declaring "nothing to report."

The flagging of material at Sitka National Historical Park was reported last July by The Washington Post. However, the details and extent of material under review were far more limited in that article, referencing a single sign explaining "that missionaries worked to destroy indigenous cultures and languages across Alaska."

The following items at the Sitka historical park are flagged, in addition to those above. (All spellings, punctuation, etc. are as listed in the database.)

• "Russian No More" ("picture and problematic caption"): "The Kiks.aadi, a clan of the Tlingit, mourn the transfer anniversary and counter the 2021 Alaska Day ceremony."

• "Main Timeline" panel at Russian Bishop’s House ("possible concerning language"): "1904: Territorial Governor John Brady ordered the Tlingit to hold the so-called "last Great Potlatch." This began a period when American officals begin pressuring the Tlingit to stop traditional ceremonies. However, many of the Tlingit people continued practices in secret." "1912: A group of Alaska Natives in Sitka establish the Alaska Native Brotherhood to fight discrimination against Alaska's Southeast people."

• "Russia's Legacy Today" panel at Russian Bishop’s House ("possible concerning language"): "through violent conflict, social integration, and religious conversion, Russians altered the lifestyles and traditions of many Alaskan natives."

• "The Alaska Transfer" panel at Russian Bishop’s House ("possible concerning language"): "After learning of the transfer's terms, the Tlingit objected since Russian never owned their lands."

• "Transfer or Purchase" panel at Russian Bishop’s House ("possible concerning language"): "Alaska Natives believe that Russia had no rights to sell lands they did not own. Meanwhile, without the consent of Alaska Natives, the United States acquired Alaska under the pretext of Manifest Destiny." "Indigenous claims to Alaska's lands were not settled until the passage of the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act in 1971."

• "Fighting for Rights" panel at Russian Bishop’s House ("possible concerning language"): "In 1924, Congress granted citizenship to all Native American and Alaska Native People. Yet, Indigenous people still had no claim to their ancestral lands." "In the 1910s, the Alaska Native Brotherhood (ANB) and Alaska Native Sisterhood formed to fight for indigenous civil rights."

• "Elite or Employee" panel at Russian Bishop’s House ("text to review"): "Indigenous people thrived in Alaska, but Russians found it more challenging."

• "The Russian Empire, The North Pacific World" panel at Russian Bishop’s House ("text to review"): "Alaskan Natives named these lands first."

• Contact Mark Sabbatini at editor@juneauindependent.com or (907) 957-2306.