Embattled Smithsonian director brought 'Marxist' activism, political agenda to roles through career: historian

Smithsonian Institution Director Dr.Anthea Hartig has spent decades promoting what one historian described as an activist and Marxist-inspired approach to history, raising questions about whether the nation's premier museum system is being led by an activist rather than an objective historian.Dr.

Jody Edward Ginn argued that Hartig has worked to pivot traditional historical organizations toward activist missions, including during her time as president of the Organization of American Historians (OAH) and her leadership role 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."Ginn said his research into Hartig's professional background yielded accounts from her former associates indicating that she has "long been known for" pushing such agendas. HISTORIAN BLASTS SMITHSONIAN'S ACTIVISM SHIFT AFTER FIRST VISIT IN OVER A DECADE: 'COMPLETELY DIFFERENT PLACE'Dr.Jody Edward Ginn told Fox News Digital the Smithsonian has shifted from its educational mission toward activism after visiting the museum for the first time since 2012.

(Fox News Digital ; Kevin Carter/Getty Images)One early example Ginn cited was Hartig's 1995 research article, "In a World He Has Created," published by the California Historical Society, where Hartig later served as an executive director for seven years beginning in 2011.In the article, Hartig drew on the economic and social theories of Karl Marx to analyze the success of California's agricultural citrus industry, arguing that a wealthy "ruling class" had manipulated the Southern California landscape to reinforce and validate its own class power, including by physically concealing cheap labor.By the second paragraph of the article, Hartig referenced photographs depicting t...