Smithsonian Institution Director Anthea Hartig has faced criticism from a historian who asserts that her career has been characterized by an activist and Marxist-inspired approach to history, rather than an objective scholarly one. Dr. Jody Edward Ginn, a historian, argues that Hartig's past writings and leadership roles suggest a pivot from traditional historical missions toward advocacy.
Ginn's research indicates that Hartig has been known for pushing activist agendas throughout her career, citing her time as president of the Organization of American Historians (OAH) and her leadership at the California Historical Society. "She's asserting herself as a historical scholar who should get the last word on these things," Ginn told Fox News Digital. "Well, there's more than one problem with that. And it starts with the fact that I don't think she's really ever been a historian, she has been an advocate, an activist."
One of Hartig's early works, a 1995 article titled "In a World He Has Created," published by the California Historical Society, is highlighted by Ginn. In this article, Hartig analyzed California's citrus industry using Karl Marx's economic and social theories. She contended that a wealthy "ruling class" manipulated the landscape to reinforce its power, including by concealing cheap labor. Ginn described the article as a "political treatise" rather than a "historical examination," stating it advocated for a "Marxist-informed point of view, and not an objective historical analysis."
Hartig also served a one-year presidency at the OAH in 2023, an organization Ginn characterized as "well on the record for advocating for people's activism." The OAH's website states it "actively collaborates with advocacy partners to support history and advance our mission."
In her 2024 presidential address to the OAH, titled "Where Have All the Women Gone? Let's Bring Them Back before It's Too Late," Hartig argued that women's lives and accomplishments matter less despite decades of activism and historical research.
Ginn also questioned Hartig's recent testimony before Congress in July, where she stated that the Smithsonian operates with nonpartisanship and "does not take sides in America's political debates." Ginn finds this claim contradictory to Hartig's published work and resurfaced video footage in which she describes history as a "tool of social justice." "She's denying it. That's the most perplexing thing for me," Ginn said. "That's kind of the first frustrating thing for me as a scholar. It's kind of hard to have an honest conversation about this, when they won't acknowledge the obvious."