The director of the Smithsonian Institute’s National Portrait Gallery stepped down after the organization rebuffed President Donald Trump’s attempts to fire her.
Kim Sajet shared her departure in a statement emailed to staff by Smithsonian chief Lonnie Bunch, according to The New York Times.
“This was not an easy decision, but I believe it is the right one,” she said. “From the very beginning, my guiding principle has been to put the museum first. Today, I believe that stepping aside is the best way to serve the institution I hold so deeply in my heart.”
The president announced two weeks ago that he was firing Sajet, whom he called a “partisan person and a strong supporter of [diversity, equity, and inclusion], which is totally inappropriate for her position.”
However, Trump’s directive was ignored—Sajet continued to carry out her job, which she has held since 2013, with the backing of the institution.
Earlier this week, the Smithsonian released a thinly veiled rejoinder to Trump. It explained that the Smithsonian’s director and board held control of personnel decisions.
When news broke that Sajet had quit, the White House was quick to declare victory.
“On day one, President Trump made clear that there is no place for dangerous anti-American ideology in our government and institutions,” spokesperson Davis Ingle told the Daily Beast in a statement. “In align [sic] with this objective, he ordered the termination of Kim Sajet.”
“The Trump Administration is committed to restoring American greatness and celebrating our nation’s proud history,” he added.
Among the list of reasons cited by the Trump administration in trying to fire Sajet were her remarks during a 2018 race and justice summit at the National Portrait Gallery.
“The ‘portrait of America’ has never been only about meritocracy but also social access, racial inequality, gender difference, religious preference, and political power,” she said.
In late March, Trump issued an executive order telling the Smithsonian to stop presenting American history as “inherently racist, sexist, oppressive, or otherwise irredeemably flawed.”
While the Smithsonian has not outright bowed to Trump, the institution does appear to be taking his criticism seriously.
In an email to staff this week, Bunch, the organization’s leader, admitted he was considering making changes, according to the Times.
“While the vast majority of our content is rooted in meticulous research and thoughtful analysis of history and facts,” he wrote, “we recognize that, on occasion, some of our work has not aligned with our institutional values of scholarship, even-handedness, and nonpartisanship. For that, we must all work to do better.”
The Smithsonian—which encompasses a network of museums, libraries, research centers, and the National Zoo—was founded by Congress in 1846. It operates independently from the executive branch and is governed by a board of regents that includes the vice president and the Supreme Court’s chief justice.
It is not the only D.C. cultural institution that Trump has sought to remake since his return to office.
Trump has also seized control of the Kennedy Center, naming a MAGA loyalist as the theater’s director and vowing to wipe out its “woke” programming.
At an opening night performance of Les Misérables at the Kennedy Center, Trump was met with boos.
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