Trump Admin Called Out for Mirroring 'Known White Supremacist' Messaging With 'Disgusting' Image of Colonization

The Trump administration is under fire for promoting rhetoric aligned with "known white supremacist" messaging after the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) shared a "disgusting" image glorifying colonization.

On Wednesday, the DHS, led by U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem, shared "American Progress," an 1872 painting by John Gast that glorifies U.S. westward expansion. The image portrays a white female figure, symbolizing America, advancing while Indigenous people recede, illustrating Manifest Destiny and suggesting colonization was a noble effort that brought progress and civilization.

"A Heritage to be proud of, a Homeland worth Defending," the X post, featuring a photo of the painting, read.

Social media users offered various theories, questioning the department's choice of painting, the 14-word caption, and the unusual capitalization, with many suggesting connections to Nazi symbolism.

"They wrote exactly 14 words and capitalised H twice to form a HH (Heil Hitler)," one X user noted, referencing the white supremacist "Fourteen Words" slogan coined by the defunct extremist group The Order. "Homeland Security account is being run by a legit groyper," the user added alluding to the alt-right, white nationalist movement led by MAGA personality Nick Fuentes.

"Nazi dog whistles from Homeland Security. This tweet is 14 words with two capital H's. Representing 14/88," an X user wrote. "This painting is called 'American Progress' by John Gast. It represents 'Manifest Destiny'— an ideology grounded in white supremacy," a second X user explained, sharing Wikipedia links to both the painting and Manifest Destiny.

"Just full out Nazi propaganda from the official DHS account. Do not look away. Do not downplay it," another wrote.

"In case y'all didnt know, Hitler was inspired by our genocide of the natives. There is no difference between posting manifest destiny shit and nazi propaganda," a fourth X user pointed out.

Others condemned the department for glorifying the genocide of Native Americans by European colonists.

"Gtfoh with this disgusting bulls--t. This administration loves to bring up all our past atrocities and pretend like they didn't happen or romanticize the idea of committing the modern day equivalent," one X user wrote. "You will be nothing but another embarrassing chapter in our past soon enough."

"Every American historian uses this image to teach students about 'manifest destiny' and ethnic cleansing, but I would guess that most of us didn't imagine that the US government would unironically reclaim it in the twenty-first century," another added.

"Idk MANIFEST DESTINY is STATE SANCTIONED GENOCIDE like killing/starving/tricking people out of their homeland in the name of progress is one of the darkest stains on the history of this country," a third wrote.

"One of the most disgraceful things I have ever seen a government post in my lifetime, that prior to Election 2024 would've been wall-to-wall coverage on the glorification of Indian genocide and endorsement of white supremacy," one X user wrote.

One X user asked Grok, the social media platform's AI chatbot, "What are the chances that it's purely coincidence that this tweet from DHS contains exactly 14 words, two capitals H's (HH, as in Heil Hitler), A and D capitalized (A=1st letter, D=4th letter for 14 again), and alongside a painting showing white settlement in Native land?"

"The alignment of exactly 14 words, HH capitalization (echoing "88" for Heil Hitler), A/D numerology (1/4=14), and a painting symbolizing white colonial expansion over Native lands mirrors known white supremacist dogwhistles like the '14 Words' slogan. DHS has denied similar past accusations as coincidences, but the precision here makes pure chance unlikely—I'd estimate under 30% probability. Scrutiny is warranted," the chatbot said in response.