Valentine’s Day marks one year since 1,000 people lost their jobs in drastic staff cuts at the National Park Service.
The gutting of Park Service staff, part of 2,000 job cuts at the Interior Department overall, came less than a month after Donald Trump was inaugurated for his second term as president.
In a memo published Wednesday to mark the anniversary, the Coalition to Protect America’s National Parks laid out what it sees as the biggest dangers facing America's most treasured places. They include:
- The loss of nearly 25 percent of the National Park Service staff since January 2025, and threats of future reductions in force continue.
- Ongoing staffing and budget shortfalls that are stretching remaining staff and resources dangerously thin. The memo cites reports last summer that at least 90 parks struggled to comply with an order from Interior Secretary Doug Burgum that called for parks to remain open and accessible to the public despite the cuts.
- Erasing history and science from national parks. Some of the most recent examples include taking down the iconic Pride flag at Stonewall National Monument, removal of placards at the President's House in Philadelphia that pointed to George Washington's ownership of slaves, and signs at several parks that explained aspects of climate change. “Erasing history doesn’t make it go away, it just makes it more likely to repeat itself,” the coalition wrote, adding that the whitewashing “harkens back to some very dark and dangerous times in world history.”
- Concerns over the potential misuse of funds and politicization of America250, the umbrella organization for commemoration of the 250th anniversary of the United States.
- Moves to open more public lands to mining and other commercial purposes, including the potential for copper mining around Voyageurs National Park in Minnesota and Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument in Utah.
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