The U.S. Department of the Interior is posting signs at national parks across the country asking visitors to report actions that reflect poorly on American history, but some park visitors say they're concerned about the implications.
The sign posted at Cuyahoga Valley National Park's Boston Mill Visitor Center encourages people to report negative messaging about "past or living Americans."
Some visiting the park, like Jay Pearson from McMinnville, Oregon had not initially noticed the sign. Monday was Pearson's first visit to CVNP. He said the sign encourages people to report material that educates visitors about other cultures.
"National parks that have those interpretives … I just think it suggests that we take all that away," Pearson said. "There's a deeper history there that's more important for us to understand each other. So, I think that is not a positive thing."
In a memo, the National Park Service said it will review any messages found to "perpetuate a false reconstruction of American history…or include any improper partisan ideology."
Pearson and his wife make a habit of visiting parks across the country. To him, the sign is a threat to history preservation at national parks, he said.
"It is a place for people to come together, and I think it's the community of America that can come together and read these things about our history," he said. "Whether it's good part of our history or one that was challenging at the moment."
Amy Smith and Julie Kinzel from Philadelphia were also first-time visitors at CVNP Monday and said they too had not initially seen the sign. Upon learning similar signs were also posted in other national parks, Smith said it raised bigger concerns.
"We celebrate history. We celebrate the United States," she said. "My fear would be that they are trying to suggest that people who are anti-American visit the parks, and I've never seen that. I can't imagine that."
The pair have visited Gettysburg National Military Park, Valley Forge National Historical Park, Glacier National Park and others. However, after participating in their local No Kings protest Saturday, Kinzel said the signs may lead to a slippery slope.
"I hope that they're not trying to remove the important parts of history that are vital to where we are today and hopefully better than we were," she said, "but I think we're going backwards to tell you the truth."
