This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at UCF chapter.
On Feb. 9, President Donald Trump signed a proclamation officially declaring the day as “Gulf of America Day.” This comes shortly after Trump signed Executive Order 14172 — Restoring Names That Honor American Greatness — on the day of his inauguration. This officially renamed the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America. Additionally, the order authorizes changing Alaska mountain Denali to Mount McKinley. The order, which has garnered negative responses from both Mexico and Alaska, has left many Americans wondering Trump’s reasoning behind the name changes and what it means for the future of territorial ownership under his administration.
As stated in the order, Trump accredits this decision to the Gulf of Mexico being an “integral asset to our once burgeoning Nation and has remained an indelible part of America.” Trump’s decision to change Denali to Mount McKinley comes from his admiration for President William McKinley, who he deems a “natural businessman” and someone who “made our country very rich through tariffs.” In other words, the name changes serve as Trump’s way of honoring American greatness. Although proposed by Trump as an official day of observance, neighboring states and countries refuse to recognize the “Gulf of America” as such.
Mexico’s President Claudia Sheinbaum took a humorous approach in expressing her opposition to Trump’s executive order. At a Jan. 8 press conference, Sheinbaum displayed a 1607 map of the United States, which labeled U.S. territory as “América Mexicana.”
“It sounds nice, no?” she stated, suggesting that the United States should rename itself as such. Though acknowledged with humor, Sheinbaum affirms that Mexico will continue to refer to the body of water by its original name, stating, “The Gulf of Mexico is still the Gulf of Mexico.”
The changing of Alaska mountain Denali to Mount McKinley has sparked outrage from Alaskans across the state. To Alaskan residents, scrapping the mountain’s original name is an erasure of the history and culture surrounding it. According to Alaska state senator Scott Kawasaki, “Alaskans and travelers from around the world have known it to be Denali. The Athabascan people have lived in the Interior for thousands of years, and for thousands of years have embraced Denali as its proper name.” A public opinion poll conducted by Alaska Public Media shows that the majority of Alaska residents are unhappy with Trump’s decision, rejecting the change by a “two-to-one margin.” This has prompted the Alaska Senate to pass a resolution pushing Trump to reverse his decision.
According to Business Insider, experts in international law and geography believe Trump’s decision to sign Executive Order 14172 into office contains notable implications surrounding America’s place in culture-war politics. Ian Hurd, a political science professor at Northwestern University, tells Business Insider, “Nationalist governments often project an image of power by giving ideologically laden names to places. This appears to be the motivation in Trump’s claim to the ‘Gulf of America.’” Experts believe that with these changes, Trump aims to alter the way he and the United States are perceived internationally. Specifically, this entails positioning them as powerful forces in global politics.
Trump’s decision to rename historical areas and landmarks such as the Gulf of Mexico and Denali has elicited external responses. American citizens are left ill-informed about Trump’s reasoning and political implications concerning this order, while Mexico and Alaska call for the immediate reversal of these changes. Although formally recognized as “Gulf of America Day” in the United States, Feb. 9 will carry different implications for various sectors across North America.
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Publish date : 2025-02-25 00:00:00
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