As part of its program of cultural counterrevolution, the Trump administration has declared war on libraries, universities, cultural institutions, historical sites, museums and individual scholars whose efforts run counter to chauvinism, militarism and anticommunism.

Like the Nazis before them, Trump and his cronies reach for their guns when they hear the word “culture.”

The latest “National Snapshot of United States Museums,” issued by the American Alliance of Museums (AAM), provides a glimpse into the present conditions. One of its critical findings is that one-third of museums have lost federal funding under the new Trump regime and two-thirds of affected institutions have not been able to replace their grant money at all. Only eight percent have been able to fully make up for the loss of government funding through other sources.

The AAM tries to put a good face on the situation, asserting that despite everything, “museums remain steadfast in serving their communities,” which no doubt is true, but does not offer any fighting way out of the present crisis. In any event, the depth of the crisis does find limited expression in the recent report.

The AAM, with 35,000 member museums, surveyed 511 museum directors across the US this summer. The AAM begins by noting that its annual report on the museum field

comes at a time of deep uncertainty for museums nationwide. While many institutions continue working to rebound from the severe impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, recovery has been inconsistent, and troubling trends are emerging.

Disturbingly, even compared with the 2024 report, both museum finances and attendance show new downturns, and 

more than half of museums are currently seeing fewer visitors than in 2019, and nearly a third report declines tied to weakened travel and tourism and/or economic uncertainty. Only half report stronger bottom lines in 2024 than pre-pandemic, while a quarter report weaker bottom lines than in 2019.

The report then refers to the Trump administration’s various executive orders and actions, which have

had significant ramifications for museums and the communities they serve. One-third of museums report cancelled government grants or contracts (most often from the Institute of Museum and Library Services, the National Endowment for the Humanities, and the National Endowment for the Arts) and some have not been reimbursed for money they had already spent from government grants or contracts.

The Snapshot provides these facts about the museums affected by canceled government grants or contracts and unreimbursed expenditures:

• The median loss is $30,000.

• Most commonly, lost grants are from the Institute of Museum and Library Services (median of $50,000), the National Endowment for the Humanities (median of $25,000), and the National Endowment for the Arts (median of $25,000).

• As noted above, two-thirds (67 percent) report that the lost funding has not been replaced by foundations, sponsors, and/or donors. Only 8 percent of affected museums report that the lost funding has been fully replaced by foundations, sponsors, and/or donors, while 24 percent report that the lost funding has been partially replaced.

These losses, the AAM asserts, have forced “difficult choices, including deferring facility or physical infrastructure improvements; canceling programming for students, rural communities, individuals with disabilities, the elderly, and/or veterans; and reducing public programs overall.”

When asked what they anticipate will be the biggest disruptions to their overall strategy and plans in 2026, 

museum directors most commonly cited shifts in philanthropy (63 percent). Roughly half of directors pointed to inflation (53 percent), financial and market instability (52 percent), changes to travel and tourism (48 percent), and the reduction or elimination of government funding (47 percent). One-third (33 percent) identified ideological and political polarization as another likely disruption in the year ahead.

An article posted by Artnet some months ago, “‘Nobody’s Coming to Save Us’: How US Museums Are Battling for Their Future Under Trump,” painted an even bleaker picture.

The piece cited the comments of various figures in the museum field. Anne Ellegood, director of the Institute of Contemporary Art Los Angeles, commented, “It feels like an assault and I think we can fairly describe it as a culture war.” Philanthropy consultant Melissa Cowley Wolf asserted that the Trump “administration has declared war on the nonprofit sector. … It’s a lot to keep up with and it’s continuously devastating if you care about the work of civil society.”

Carin Kuoni, senior director and chief curator at the Vera List Center for Art and Politics at the New School in New York, told Artnet:

I don’t think we’ve seen anything like it. The assault on civic institutions is so profound and so structural that they won’t recover very quickly. We’re looking at a changed landscape that we can’t quite see yet but it is changing how nonprofits exist in this country.

Moreover, Artnet had difficulty even finding individuals willing to talk about the ferocious attacks.

“Everyone is very scared of speaking up,” one museum director said. Indeed, many requests for interviews for this article, sent to a dozen major public and private art and science museums around the country, were answered with silence or messages like “We’re going to politely pass.”

The Trump administration took early aim at the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS). Artnet commented:

The IMLS cuts alone would mean eliminating 891 open awards to museums with $180 million in federal funds. What’s more, in most cases, museums had already spent the funds and were slated to get reimbursed under the terms of their contracts, but that money will not be repaid, voiding legal contracts with the museums and leaving them in the lurch.

The Trump administration is accelerating its efforts to impose a US version of the Hitlerite Gleichschaltung, “synchronization,” “coordination” or “integration,” the Nazi regime’s effort to “bring into line” all aspects of political and cultural life and subordinate them to the fascist state’s ideology. The devastation or destruction of museums, which may offer views on society and history that conflict with the official narrative, is an aspect of that program.

The logic of the actions points toward a presidential dictatorship and the attempt to crush dissent and independent thought. The cultural counterrevolution is aimed at numbing and intimidating the population, while justifying war, social inequality and fascistic attacks on democratic rights.