The National Archives and Records Administration will place a trigger warning, called a “Harmful Language Alert,” on every document in the online Archives Catalog, according to a press release.
Americans will find that warning on the Constitution, the Declaration of Independence, and the Bill of Rights.
“The Catalog and web pages contain some content that may be harmful or difficult to view,” said a statement from the NARA.
Sen. James Lankford, R-Okla., criticized the archivist of the United States, David S. Ferriero, for letting far-left political ideas into the National Archives, a government agency that should remain nonpartisan.
Lankford sent Ferriero a letter on Thursday calling the “politically charged” warnings “disturbing” and said that the NARA has gone “leaps and bounds” beyond its proper role.
“As a nation, we should take pride in our founding documents, not stipulate them as if we are ashamed of the very freedoms that provide individuals in our nation with the ability to discuss and discern for themselves how to engage with and respond to their government, its laws, and its history,” he said.
Lankford said that America compensates for the “stains” in its history by being the “most free and diverse society on earth.”
Ferriero made the decision after the Archivist’s Task Force on Racism found that structural racism “permeates all aspects of work and workplace culture at NARA,” including in the historical documents that the organization maintains.
The NARA struggled to justify its mission to keep the documents at all.
“NARA’s records span the history of the United States, and it is our charge to preserve and make available these historical records,” it said in a statement.
“As a result, some of the materials presented here may reflect outdated, biased, offensive, and possibly violent views and opinions,” it continued. “In addition, some of the materials may relate to violent or graphic events and are preserved for their historical significance.”
