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Tag: Lonnie G III

  • Head of African American Museum Departs as Trump Targets Smithsonian

    Head of African American Museum Departs as Trump Targets Smithsonian


    His order claimed that the Smithsonian, in particular, had “come under the influence of a divisive, race-centered ideology” and that it promotes “narratives that portray American and Western values as inherently harmful and oppressive.”

    The executive order presents a test for Mr. Bunch, who was not told of it in advance. Though he has not commented publicly, he last week sent an email to Smithsonian employees indicating an intention to persevere, saying that “we remain committed to telling the multifaceted stories of this country’s extraordinary heritage.”

    Mr. Bunch won praise for creating and leading the African American museum. But in an indication of the pressure he is expected to feel from the Trump administration going forward, Steven Cheung, the White House communications director, described Mr. Bunch in a statement earlier this week as a “failure.”

    The museum opened with strong bipartisan support, but has come under attack from some Republicans as race and diversity have become a growing political flashpoint. In a 2023 congressional hearing with Mr. Bunch, some Republicans accused the Smithsonian of “left indoctrination.”

    Mr. Trump’s order criticized the African American Museum for a graphic posted online in May 2020 that referred to “hard work,” “individualism” and “the nuclear family” as part of “white culture.” (The graphic has drawn condemnation before; in the past Mr. Bunch has said he agreed that the graphic was inappropriate, and noted it had been taken down shortly after it was posted, when it was criticized by Donald Trump Jr. and other conservatives.)

    The graphic was posted before Mr. Young’s arrival at the museum. During his tenure, the museum has organized a number of temporary exhibits with a strong arts and cultural bent, including “Reckoning,” a show about art and Black protest that opened in 2021, and “Afrofuturism,” which opened in 2023.

    David Remnick, the editor of The New Yorker, said: “Kevin’s contributions to the culture as a poet, essayist, editor, and leader of a great American museum are dazzling. I know he will go on making his mark in myriad ways and in the bravest voice.”



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  • Trump Orders Smithsonian to Promote ‘American Greatness’ in Executive Order

    Trump Orders Smithsonian to Promote ‘American Greatness’ in Executive Order


    “I think the document itself was wrong and flawed,” he told a Congressional oversight committee in 2023. “I do think, however, it’s important for the Smithsonian to help the country grapple with questions of race, so I’m not going to run away from that. But I agree with you very much that that document is not the kind of document that should be at the Smithsonian.”

    In the executive order, Mr. Trump claimed that the American Women’s History Museum, which is under development, “plans to celebrate male athletes participating in women’s sports.” The museum’s collections and digital exhibits include material about trans women, including the activist Sylvia Rivera, who helped lead the 1969 Stonewall rebellion, and the professional skateboarder Cher Strauberry, who donated one of her skate decks to the museum. But leaders have not released plans for the physical museum, which is still seeking a permanent space on the National Mall.

    Laura Raicovich, a former museum executive who wrote a book on the relationship between art, protest and politics, said that the new executive order was a powerful lesson in how governments seek to shape history.

    “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,” she said.

    Some historians are defending the Smithsonian, which is not just a public museum but also a highly respected research institution. James Grossman, the executive director of the American Historical Association, the country’s largest group of professional historians, said the fact sheet accompanying the order “egregiously misrepresents the work of the Smithsonian.”

    “The historical scholarship in the Smithsonian is careful, honest and based on historical evidence,” he said. “Historians draw on that evidence to understand how our nation has evolved. That evolution includes elements that should make us proud. But also elements that we should not be proud of, but from which we should learn.”



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  • Smithsonian Closes Diversity Office After Trump’s Executive Order

    Smithsonian Closes Diversity Office After Trump’s Executive Order


    The Smithsonian Institution informed employees on Tuesday that it would close its diversity office, freeze hiring for all federal positions and require workers to return to in-person work in order to comply with recent orders from President Trump.

    The announcement came after President Trump signed an executive order this month describing the Biden administration’s diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives as “illegal and immoral discrimination programs.” The order has led museums that receive significant government support to abruptly shift their policies to try to comply with the new rules from the White House.

    Last week the National Gallery of Art in Washington, which recently mounted a rebranding campaign that focused on diversity, equity and inclusion, announced that it was closing its office of belonging and inclusion.

    Now a similar effort is underway at the Smithsonian, one of the largest cultural institutions in the United States. The organization includes 21 museums across the country and receives nearly two-thirds of its $1 billion budget from the federal government.

    A museum official said that while the museum was closing its Office of Diversity, it would be retaining its “efforts at visitor accessibility as it serves a critical function.”

    Smithsonian Secretary Lonnie G. Bunch III said that the diversity office’s closure would be a “first step” to address the new federal policy, according to an email obtained by The Washington Post, which first reported the changes.

    The Smithsonian is a hybrid institution that includes both private and federal employees. The organization’s hiring page currently includes about 40 jobs that executives were looking to fill at different museums around the country, including a conservator position at the National Air and Space Museum and a supervisory veterinary medical officer at the National Zoological Park.



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