Smithsonian
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The Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington, D.C., is experiencing one of its most turbulent periods in its nearly nine years of existence and is currently without leadership after its executive director stepped down. The institution’s recent targeting by President Donald Trump over what his administration deems are “divisive” exhibits has raised concerns among advocates and observers. “Our opponents are trying to erase Black history, Black voices and Black lives,” said African American Policy Forum executive director Kimberlé Williams Crenshaw in an interview.Kevin Young was serving as the director of the NMAAHC until his resignation in early April, just as Trump issued an executive order entitled “Restoring Truth and Sanity to American History,” which took aim at the Smithsonian and the NMAAHC in particular as having “come under the influence of a divisive, race-centered ideology.” Young, who had been in the position since 2021, had actually been on leave since March 14. Unnamed sources had expressed that some felt that the position was too complex for Young, who had previously served as the head of the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture in Harlem, New York, and is still the poetry editor for the New Yorker.
Smithsonian Institution Secretary Lonnie G. Bunch III, however, praised Young’s work in making the NMAHHC more accessible for all during his tenure, citing recent exhibits such as one on Afrofuturism and design and a major exhibition on slavery, “In Slavery’s Wake,” which will travel to Europe, South America and Africa over the course of the year. In an internal memo, Bunch reiterated the intent to continue the museum’s mission, writing that “we remain committed to telling the multifaceted stories of this country’s extraordinary heritage.”Many in the Black community, led by Black churches, have rallied behind the NMAAHC through organizing rallies and fundraising drives as the Trump administration has debated whether to withhold federal funding. There have been reports of the administration removing exhibits from the museum such as parts of the Woolworth’s lunch counter from the sit-ins of the Civil Rights Era being removed, but those would be proven as inaccurate by Smithsonian leadership. Other items returned to those who donated them to the NMAAHC were explained as having been returned due to the end of their being leased to the museum.
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A new executive order from President Donald Trump is aimed at ending funding for Smithsonian museums, including the National Museum of African American History and Culture.
On Thursday (March 27), President Donald Trump issued a new executive order that squarely targets the Smithsonian Institution—specifically funding for it that promotes programs that advance “improper ideology” and “divisive narratives”. The executive order, entitled “Restoring Truth and Sanity to American History”, places Vice President JD Vance in charge of the effort to revamp all areas of the Smithsonian, including the National Zoo. Vance has a position on the Smithsonian Board of Regents. The news left many on social media incensed, with some calling it “whitewashing”.
The order explicitly names the National Museum of African American History and Culture, which was completed in 2016 under the administration of former President Barack Obama, the nation’s first Black president. Trump’s order claims that the NMAAHC “has proclaimed that ‘hard work,’ ‘individualism,’ and ‘the nuclear family’ are aspects of ‘White culture’.” It also re-establishes his 1776 Commission which was shelved by former President Joe Biden in 2021, along with a separate order creating a “Task Force 250” focused on creating a “grand celebration” for the nation’s 250th anniversary. Secretary of The Interior Doug Burgm
The order also signals that Trump aims to reinstall and adjust statues and monuments honoring figures from the Confederate Army of the Civil War that were changed or removed before January 1, 2020, to “perpetuate a false reconstruction of American history, inappropriately minimize the value of certain historical events or figures, or include any other improper partisan ideology.” Those statues were removed in the wake of protests over the murder of George Floyd in 2020.
The Smithsonian Institution is the world’s largest museum complex, which is composed of 21 museums – eleven are situated along the National Mall in Washington, D.C. as well as in Virginia and New York. The chief spokesperson for the Smithsonian Institution, Linda St. Thomas, said “We have no comment for now,” in an email to AP News. Former museum executive Laura Raicovich blasted the move in an interview with the New York Times: “The order itself is a clear example of the weaponization of language by the administration to undo the necessary historical correctives undertaken by knowledge institutions in recent years.”
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The National Museum of African American History and Culture is set to release a new book capturing the impact of Black music on American society and the world.
In a press release issued on Wednesday (February 23rd), the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture (NMAAHC) celebrated the release of Musical Crossroads: Stories Behind the Objects of African American Music. The new book covers the impact of Black music on America and the world from the 19th Century to the present day, featuring compelling images of over 200 images of items from the institution’s permanent collection which were featured in a 2017 exhibition by the same name.
“Harriet Tubman’s hymnal, Charlie Parker’s saxophone, Chuck Berry’s Cadillac Eldorado, Sammy Davis Jr.’s childhood tap shoes, the Parliament Funkadelic Mothership—these are among the nearly 4,000 items that make up the music collection stewarded by the National Museum of African American History and Culture,” said NMAAHC Director Kevin W. Young.
The essays in the Musical Crossroads book are contained within five chapters: Music and the Meaning of Things, Roots and Branches, Music in the Community, Music of the Community, I Wish I Knew How It Would Feel To Be Free, and The Power(s) of Black Music. Essays have been contributed by a select array of writers and researchers, with former NMAAHC Music and Performing Arts Curator Dwandalyn D. Reece serving as editor.
“Music is the great equalizer around the world. No matter where it originates or what form it takes, it has played a crucial role in shaping the human experience and preserving the history of that experience for centuries,” Reece wrote in the press statement. “The museum’s music collection includes celebrated artists, diverse music genres, high-profile professionals, institutions, and historical events, as well as artifacts that reflect the role music plays in the day-to-day lives of individuals in their homes, churches, schools, and local communities.”
The book is published in conjunction with GILES Ltd, a company based in the United Kingdom. Musical Crossroads: Stories Behind the Objects of African American Music will be available to the public for purchase on March 7th, 2023 wherever books are sold.
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