Emmett Till memorial in Mississippi could be removed as part of DOGE-recommended $1 billion cuts to national parks
Memorial to civil rights icon at risk amid Trump’s anti-DEI drive
- Donald Trump’’s administration has made moves that could lead to the removal of the Emmett Till national monument, risking public outcry.
- The Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), formerly led by Elon Musk, recommended a nearly $1 billion cut to the National Park Service budget.
- A recent Justice Department opinion grants presidents the right to revoke national monument status, a power not held since the 1930s.
- These actions are seen as part of Donald Trump’s broader effort to eradicate diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) values from public institutions.
- The Emmett Till and Mamie Till-Mobley National Monument, established in 2023, honors the Black teen murdered in 1955 and his mother, a civil rights icon.