Donald Trump‘s administration is blocking national parks from offering free entrance to the public on Martin Luther King Jr. Day or on Juneteenth. MLK Day, celebrated annually on the third Monday of January to honor Dr. King’s birthday, has been recognized at national parks for decades. Now, however, there is no more free entrance on MLK Day or Juneteenth, the holiday that honors the end of slavery in the U.S. Instead, Trump has decided that free entrance should be given on his own birthday on June 14, SFGate reported.
Tyrhee Moore, the executive director of a nonprofit outdoor advocacy group known as Soul Trak Outdoors, said Trump’s policy “is deeply concerning.”
“Removing free-entry days on MLK Day and Juneteenth sends a troubling message about who our national parks are for,” Moore said, per SFGate. “These holidays hold profound cultural and historical significance for Black communities, and eliminating them as access points feels like a direct targeting of the very groups who already face systemic barriers to the outdoors.”
Moore said his organization’s mission is to resist “these kinds of systemic attempts that disguise exclusion as administrative or political decisions.”
“Policies like this reinforce inequalities around access and visibly show how systems can create obstacles that keep communities of color from feeling welcomed in public spaces,” Moore said.
What are some of the various activities that take place at national parks to honor MLK Day?
After Congress established MLK Day as a National Day of Service in 1994, various acts of caring have been taking place at national parks every year during the holiday. At the San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park, for example, volunteers come together on MLK Day to take care of the various plants. Similar activities take place at Big Thicket National Preserve in Texas as people plant native plants. Volunteers at Hot Springs National Park in Arkansas also remove graffiti, while people at Capitol Reef National Park in Utah pick up litter.
What are other holidays that are celebrated with free entrance at national parks?
While Trump is removing free entrance to the public on MLK Day and Juneteenth, national parks are still offering the deal on several other holidays. Some of the other holidays that allow free entrance are Presidents Day (Washington’s Birthday), Memorial Day and Independence Day weekend.
Free entrance is also given on the 110th birthday of the National Park Service in 2026, as well as Constitution Day, Theodore Roosevelt’s birthday and Veterans Day.