This story was updated to include additional details about the exhibit curators.
A longtime volunteer at the Rosie the Riveter WWII Home Front’s Visitor Education Center was shocked when asked to help remove an LGBTQ history-related exhibit the same week that the Trump administration issued directives that prompted federal agencies to erase public-facing information about their diversity, equity and inclusion programs.
The volunteer told Richmondside that it was their understanding that there was an official order on Jan. 23 telling staff to remove the exhibit, a series of three panels discussing the history of the LGBTQ community in the Bay Area during World War II. The exhibit explores the increased freedoms, fights for equality, and sense of community that occurred at this time.
The volunteers and others who were present were stunned, said the volunteer, who requested anonymity over fears that the park’s staff would face retribution. Another staff member was too shaken to help remove the exhibits so the volunteer helped take them down.
The volunteer recalled feelings of emotion and disbelief that the longstanding exhibit was being removed. The exhibit was put up several years ago as part of an effort led by former Supervisory Interpretive Ranger Elizabeth Tucker and Public Historian Donna Graves, with contributions from The Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender Historical Society and others.
While it’s unclear why the exhibit was removed — the panels were back on view on Jan. 26, and those close to the incident say the removal was a miscommunication — the situation signals how confused federal agencies are following a slew of executive orders signed by President Trump.
A spokesperson for the National Park Service, which operates the Rosie education center, Armand Johnson, did not elaborate on what happened, saying only in an email, “The exhibit is up. I have nothing else for you.”
Federal recognition of “only two sexes, male and female”
Among Trump’s many federal orders was an executive order directing federal agencies to remove any and all diversity, equity and inclusion efforts, offices, and language from internal and public-facing material. He further encouraged those in the private sector to do the same. This order came soon after another one announcing the federal recognition of “only two sexes, male and female,” and requiring federal offices to remove gender inclusive language, and references to the transgender community and nonbinary individuals from many federal websites.
For example, the Centers for Disease Controls’ health web pages related to LGBTQ+ youths’ risk of suicide, and information on HIV, have been scrubbed from its site. And several web pages associated with diversity, equity and inclusion topics for the National Park Service are now unable to be viewed as of the publication time of this article.
A decade of Richmond progress in LGBTQ+ pride
When Richmondside spoke with District 2 Richmond City Councilmember and Vice Mayor Cesar Zepeda, the first openly gay man elected to the council, about the incident at the Rosie education center, it was the first he had heard about it.
Zepeda said he planned to reach out to the Rosie center directly to let them know that if they are asked to remove any LGBTQ content, he would be willing to take it and display it somewhere else visible in the community.
“We will not be silenced, ” Zepeda said. “We will put it up and celebrate our history and celebrate our future.”
Protecting the LGBTQ+ community through direct action and advocacy is something Zepeda has been doing for more than a decade. He remembers the time he watched in shock as Jovanka Beckles, Richmond’s first openly lesbian city council member, became a target of hate speech at a 2014 council meeting.
“I remember sitting in the front and thinking, ‘What year am I in?’” Zepeda said.
Zepeda later asked what organizations were in Richmond to protect the LGBTQ+ community. He was met with a clear response: There weren’t any. So, he formed one.
Richmond Rainbow Pride was founded in 2014 by Zepeda and several others as a way to uplift, celebrate and protect Richmond’s LGBTQ+ community. Since its inception, they’ve held Pride events, put up pride and Juneteenth flags around the city, and helped establish a LGBTQ+ police liaison, among other things.
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“There is a fear of what’s going to happen. I definitely feel it personally.”
— Cesar Zepeda, council member and founder of Richmond Rainbow Pride
While Zepeda says fears within the Richmond LGBTQ+ community come and go throughout the years, unfortunately, under the latest Trump administration he has heard increased concern from constituents.
“There is a fear of what’s going to happen,” said Zepeda. “I definitely feel it personally.”
While things are constantly changing and no one can predict what’s going to happen from Washington, he said he and Richmond Rainbow Pride will not back down from working to keep the community safe.
“This is a moment for coming together and supporting each other. While our gender identities and legal protections are under threat we acknowledge multiple communities are also targeted,” said the Richmond Rainbow Pride board in an emailed statement in regards to the current political climate. “Our goal is collective liberation, and we encourage all of our partner organizations and individual members to link into existing efforts. Whether it’s this year’s Pride planning for June 1, 2025 or other activities, we can continue to encourage each other and keep each other safe. No order can erase our identity or our history.”
Along with the orders targeting DEI initiatives and gender inclusion, an additional executive order from the White House was issued specifically targeting the United States’ immigrant community, in an attempt to block birthright citizenship. Nearly 35% of the Richmond community was born outside of the United States, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.
Zepeda emphasized the intersectionality LGBTQ+ issues and the experiences of other Richmond communities, saying the organization is there to protect and uplift all marginalized people. (He participated in a protest march last weekend to support the rights of undocumented residents.)
This sentiment was echoed by another East Bay organization that serves the LGTBQ+ community, the Oakland LGBTQ Community Center.
“We are directly being targeted, and if we’re targeted by people at the very top, what do we expect from everyday Americans?,” said Joe Hawkins, CEO and co-founder of the center. “The president’s actions are causing intersectional harm. Not only are we LGBTQ, but we’re Black, we’re Latinx, we’re women, we’re trans, we’re all these identities and all those identities are being attacked at once.”
Hawkins and co-founder Jeff Myers created the center in response to President Trump’s first term. He said that they knew then how severe the impact would be on the LGBTQ+ community and said that he’s not surprised to see organizations removing content out of fear. However Hawkins hopes the leaders of local organizations will resist removing LGBTQ+ content out of compassion for those in the community. He also called on the broader Bay Area community to provide support to organizations like his that may be at risk due to their nonprofit status.
“It’s just really time for our allies to step up as well, alongside us, and raise their voices and advocate for LGBTQ people and take action with us,” said Hawkins. “We just can’t stand by and allow hate to prevail.”
Dear Callie,
This is the kind of reporting I want to see more of.
It motivated me to act. I immediately applied for membership in Richmond Rainbow Pride and offered my services.
Keep up this essential reporting,
Deborah
Thank you for your reporting. I’m a gay very senior citizen and I was shocked reading about Rosie the Riveter and very grateful the exhibit is back up. Please keep reporting about LGBTQ issues and about upcoming protest demonstrations. I want to participate.
Henry Hopkins