National Archives threatened
Three national archives locations are experiencing significant changes, with the Chicago location preparing to close entirely. ICT caught up with researchers to discuss why this change is so significant and how it could infringe on the rights of tribes.
✍️ Reported by Amelia Schafer
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@lornahance7408
September 30, 2026 at 11:45 am
No errasure of the ORIGINAL AMERICANS AND THEIR RECORDS AND ITEMS!!!!
@lornahance7408
September 30, 2026 at 11:45 am
This is ABHORRENT!!!!
@christophmahler
September 30, 2026 at 11:45 am
They are preparing to devastate the continent.
If they were planning for survival, they wouldn't ditch national archives. They know that they are not coming back for historical continuity.
@TooMuch-n9p
September 30, 2026 at 11:45 am
These are by far the worst days that I know of the United States, I am 70 years old, and I have seen some horrible shit in my life, nature and criminals in my face….. but this administration is evil 100% consumed by evil…
@danielrandolph9170
September 30, 2026 at 11:45 am
WHAT IS THE PRESIDENT TRUMP TRYING TO DO ERACE THE NATIVE AMERICAN PAPER TRAIL SO NO ONE CAN LOOK UP WHERE THEY CAME FROM & EXPOSED ALL THE WRONG DOING THE UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT DONE & STOLE FROM THE NATIVE AMERICAN PEOPLE !!!
@Screwballkizmet
September 30, 2026 at 11:45 am
Shameful.
@michaellichty2698
September 30, 2026 at 11:45 am
Sue them for information!
@michaellichty2698
September 30, 2026 at 11:45 am
Where are they taking these records?
@embodi13adorned
September 30, 2026 at 11:45 am
People in the comments are interpreting this as a personal attack against Native Nations. These archives hold documents for the entire United States. This is an issue for everyone, including Native Nations.
Also- the reduction in the real estate for federal archives is a movement that predates the Trump administration and has a lot to do with the increasing digital environment. Not saying this is good or okay, but it's not necessarily as alarmist as people are acting in these comments. For example, congress appropriated 30 million dollars in February 2026 for a replacement facility in Seattle, signaling that there is concern for ongoing retention and preservation of physical records.
The major problem is, which was really the point of the video when you get past the sensationalism in the comments, is that moving these documents to new locations makes accessing them much more difficult for people and that is really unfortunate.
@Jnx-iCu2
September 30, 2026 at 11:45 am
We should just start our own “archives”
They’ve been trying to erase and vilify our people for centuries.
They’ve had ICE detain our elders for ransom to get “free range hunting” illegal aliens on sovereign lands.
From mass genocide to kidnapping our children, forced conversion schools, illegally adopted out children etc.
Erasing us by mislabeling & paper genocide.
Erasing us through appropriation etc.
Time for Native Americans & Latino Amerindians to fight back.
@aripineda6267
September 30, 2026 at 11:45 am
This is DISGUSTING! This is because of ALL the ultra-wealthy & corporations tax breaks. CONGRESS, you should have done your job. PLEASE VOTE 💙
@DashieHart
September 30, 2026 at 11:45 am
Wtf this is Outrageous I'm Native American this is Bull Crap America really wants to start wars American to hostile these days
@lqdtrance
September 30, 2026 at 11:45 am
But you’re all “sovereign nations”….. why not hold and take care of your own?
@yvonnechristian5050
September 30, 2026 at 11:45 am
The Bureau of Indian Affairs needs to file a suit for record and data pritection to prevent erasure. The current administration is taking daya and converting via AI. In an effort to justify data centers. I don't trust the system,. They're a pay to play administration selling America. off to the highest bidder. America should be better than this. Vote.
@russnrach8
September 30, 2026 at 11:45 am
Time to end the colonial occupation of Turtle Island and form a new Plurinational State whose constitution will be drafted and ratified by a coalition of representatives from the various Indigenous nations of present North America, with true equal rights for all.
@Pax_et_quies
September 30, 2026 at 11:45 am
As an academic historian, this saddens me greatly. After all these centuries, little has changed. People in power trying to silence those they don’t like. It’s atrocious.
@carolwarren2020
September 30, 2026 at 11:45 am
It’s time for a lawsuit!!!!
@kenW13
September 30, 2026 at 11:45 am
This isn’t new. Discarding or destroying records, reclassification of some to colored, negro, mulatto. I’ve seen ppl refer to it as paper genocide
@Gardens_of_Vanha_Talo_Soumi
September 30, 2026 at 11:45 am
the u.s. government has never treated the Indigenous population with respect or proper consideration and you can bet this current one of trump & co. would like nothing more than the total erasure of not only the documentation but also of the people of the Indigenous population.
@LilTricky622
September 30, 2026 at 11:45 am
This is where we fund raise or an angel gift to pay the copy fees. We cannot lose this information!!! Plus, they'll be busy for weeks copying… maybe someone will learn something, too
@YutubeWtch
September 30, 2026 at 11:45 am
Having contributed to the clarification of the Revolutionary War pension documents, I think it’s a bad policy to restrict access. That’s family history for many.
@nothingtofnterest16
September 30, 2026 at 11:45 am
they tried to bury us but they did not know we are the seeds. they can't what's in the heart and soul.
@sunnynitemare
September 30, 2026 at 11:45 am
tRump & his goons want to erase history, because within a few generations people will forget the past . They tried this at the Smithsonian museum this year .
@DianeDavis2248
September 30, 2026 at 11:45 am
ALL Americans have to protect ALL of our history
The Good
The Bad
and
The Ugly
@JoMo-73
September 30, 2026 at 11:45 am
What is also important is the lack of guarantee of preservation. No confidence at all.
@joyg2526
September 30, 2026 at 11:45 am
The system we have is a sham. There are so many loopholes and gaps that it makes it easy for nefarious manipulators to game it.
"In early 2025, President Trump fired the Senate-confirmed Archivist, Colleen Shogan, without citing a cause. This created a sudden vacancy.
Instead of nominating a new, qualified Archivist for Senate confirmation, the administration appointed Secretary of State Marco Rubio as the Acting Archivist.
This is a legally permissible move under the FVRA because Rubio was already Senate-confirmed for his role at the State Department. However, it effectively placed a partisan political official in charge of an agency that is supposed to be non-partisan and professionally qualified.
When Rubio's 300-day limit expired, he delegated his authority to James Byron, a senior adviser whose prior career was entirely at the Richard Nixon Foundation—not archival science or public history.
Where Democratic Accountability Gets Fuzzy
This sequence shows how agency leadership determination can bypass the standard checks:
No New Confirmation: The administration simply never nominated a new permanent Archivist, leaving the Senate's "advice and consent" role unused.
Delegation of Authority: Instead of a confirmed leader, you had a political appointee (Rubio) delegating power to an adviser (Byron) who was not subject to Senate confirmation for that role.
The "Reasons" for Removal: The law requires the President to tell Congress why they removed an Archivist. In this case, no cause was cited, and critics viewed the firing as retribution because NARA had referred Trump's handling of classified documents to the Justice Department.
So, while the system technically allows for this through the FVRA and the President's removal power, it enables a scenario where a non-partisan, professionally-qualified agency head is replaced by a partisan political operative without any new Senate confirmation or public explanation. That is the gap where the "democratic" checks can fail.
The broader pattern across the administration was to delay nominations, leaving key roles vacant or filled by acting officials, which Senator Heinrich criticized as an abuse of the Vacancies Reform Act and a violation of the Senate's constitutional confirmation role."
@MR2Puppies
September 30, 2026 at 11:45 am
maga whitewashing. They must be tried, prosecuted and jailed. Nothing surprises anymore
@erinmac4750
September 30, 2026 at 11:45 am
How can we stop this, fight this? As someone who's still searching documentation, this is incredibly disheartening. We can't let them do this.
Also, I had heard that the one in SF was also slated to be closed, which I'm guessing has the same implications. This is undoubtedly erasure and gatekeeping of knowledge and history.
–note: the broligarchs are doing the same in destroying books to feed AI, and academia already has a substantial amount of research behind paywalls. They want us uneducated, unenlightened, and beat down.
No. This must be fought. ❤️✊🪶
@summer27619
September 30, 2026 at 11:45 am
how do we rescue these archives?
@Rick-np9vz
September 30, 2026 at 11:45 am
I don't get why these documents haven't been copied and distributed to the Tribes involved !
Some of those documents could end up increasing the Rolls ! That might be why the Republicans want to destroy them !
@Mystic.Lillie
September 30, 2026 at 11:45 am
Trying to erase history and the people a part of it. Pure evil.
@emmahardesty4330
September 30, 2026 at 11:45 am
Somebody with too much money needs to step up now. Give a huge amount of money to stop this new crime of the regime.
@MM1922MM
September 30, 2026 at 11:45 am
Trump and his cronies have enough money to tear up the White House for a ballroom, screw up the Reflecting Pool to make it more blue, and build an Arch to glorify Trump. They also want to destroy the JFK Center for the Performing Arts. They want to get rid of the National Archives which are an important part of our history? This is outrageous! Once destroyed they can’t be replaced. The Reflecting Pool, The White House and the Arch can all be repaired or removed. The National Archives can not be replaced. They are a treasure. Trump of the “gilded junk” does not have any respect for what is important and sacred.
He must be stopped.
@KMHKC
September 30, 2026 at 11:45 am
Copy to drives what you can, it's public info, belongs to the People
@Larry-d4r5w
September 30, 2026 at 11:45 am
Stand for your nation and the right to vote
@Xavier-uknonada
September 30, 2026 at 11:45 am
Man whats going with the world? If this is the end of our illusions of freedom, I'm glad i had like 34 years of living la vida loca. But the last 10 years have looked more like regression. Yuck
@pamparker4047
September 30, 2026 at 11:45 am
How is this possible?
@saraquill
September 30, 2026 at 11:45 am
What can we do to help fight back?
@numiniritonae
September 30, 2026 at 11:45 am
What can we do? Who do I call to tell them to stop this?