Colombia's de la Espriella strips National Museum of exhibits he calls communist

Colombia’s President Abelardo de la Espriella has had dozens of exhibits removed from the National Museum in Bogotá, in what he calls a cultural “counterrevolution” against what he describes as “atheist social communism”.

The displays taken down dealt with the history of the country’s social movements, including feminist and LGBTQ+ activism, and with Colombia’s long years of political violence. Culture Minister Paola Holguín said the government was also reviewing and redesigning exhibitions and curatorial practice at other museums run by her ministry. Separately, the Foreign Ministry has renamed a courtyard that had honoured an Indigenous leader.

On Wednesday, dozens of protesters gathered outside the museum as riot police guarded its doors. Artists, students and civil rights groups accuse the government of censorship.

“I find it outrageous that they want to erase part of our history,” said Azul Riascos, a history student. He accused the government of promoting a picture of Colombia as only white, Catholic and Spanish-speaking, leaving out Black, Indigenous and LGBTQ+ communities.

Arturo Sanabria, an anthropologist at the protest, said: “These are imported narratives about terrorism and about being ‘woke’.” Political scientist Estefanía Cardozo said: “The government is making serious efforts in a cultural battle that probably doesn’t exist.”

De la Espriella, a conservative ally of US President Donald Trump, has faced large street protests in recent weeks. Gimena Sánchez-Garzoli, Andes director at the Washington Office on Latin America, said the museum drive fits a wider pattern of Trump allies copying American political narratives and tactics. In the United States, a White House report in July ordered signs calling some exhibits at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History inaccurate.