National Museum of African American History and Culture
National Museum of African American History and Culture (NMAAHC) is a Smithsonian Institution museum. Its founding had been in the concept phase since the early part of the 20th century, but Congressional opposition stalled its progress for decades. After years of advocacy and effort, the museum’s construction was authorized in 2003 by George W. Bush. In September 2016, Barack Obama led the ceremony that officially opened the museum at its permanent location on 24th Street and Constitution Avenue NW on the National Mall in Washington DC. NMAAHC has collected more than 36,00 objects and numerous interactive exhibits covering the arts, slavery, the Civil Rights Movement, athletics, music, and much more. Lonnie G. Bunch III, the museum’s founding director states, “The African American experience is the lens through which we understand what it is to be an American.”
