Asm. Mike Gipson Calls Donald Trump Naming His Birthday a National Park Holiday Both a Civil Rights and a Nature Conservation Failure

CARSON — Assemblymember Mike A. Gipson Dec. 8 (D-Carson) issued this statement:

“Donald Trump continues his parade of racist and thoughtless acts with the Department of the Interior’s announcement that starting in 2026, the Martin Luther King Jr. federal holiday will no longer be a chance for Americans to visit our own national parks free of charge,” said Assemblymember Mike A. Gipson. “Instead, Secretary Doug Burgum issued a press release creating a ‘resident-only patriotic fee-free day’ on ‘President Trump’s birthday’ next year.”

“I ask the public: ‘How does Donald Trump dare try to scrub Dr. King’s place in history from the spaces that belong to us, and crudely try to place his own legacy on top of it?’ Whether we are old or young, Dr. King had the timeless power to bring us together as Americans. Trump is so ignorant of history that he sees himself as an equivalent leader, but he is a divider unworthy of the Civil Rights Movement’s legacy.”

“This disrespect for Black history follows many desperate insults by the President, such as undercutting former President Biden’s declaration of the Juneteenth federal holiday, while also removing Juneteenth as a free entry day at national parks and even directing our National Park Service to remove park exhibits about the Underground Railroad. What the Department of the Interior proposes is another slap in the face to those who carry on the work of social justice, and I condemn it.”

“Ultimately, I stand with concerned groups like the National Parks Conservation Association, reminding us that Martin Luther King Jr. Day is a recognized time of service to others in communities like mine. For decades, Americans of all types have used a Monday away from their jobs to build up community, clean up our homeland, and beautify public property. Removing MLK Day from 2026’s fee-free holidays keeps many families from participating in this tradition, and that’s why it may be the most harmful move yet.”

“Americans recognize a pattern of behavior by this ignorant administration, which claims to be improving our parks yet did not have a problem withholding park staff’s pay during the longest federal shutdown ever. I, on the other hand, have fought and will keep fighting to ensure that Americans of color and all people embrace our country – from bringing $3 million to the 40-Acre Conservation League in 2023, to helping the State find $3 million for the Alondra Gateway Park on Compton Creek that opened this year.”