“That’s what this museum is about”.
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“The thing about this museum is that it’s. more than just telling stories about the famous”.
The new Smithsonian will open to the public Saturday afternoon, following the dedication.
“Perhaps it can help a white visitor understand the pain and anger of demonstrators in places like Ferguson and Charlotte”, Obama said. “We’ll walk away that much more in love with this country”. President Obama is expected to speak at the museum’s opening ceremony.
The president spoke on his weekly radio address in advance of his and the first lady’s attending the opening today of the National Museum of African American History and Culture. Clinton is the Democratic nominee for president.
Racial issues have been a source of tension for Obama throughout his two terms in the Oval Office, as the nation’s first black president has sought to reconcile efforts to unify the country with persistent disparities in living standards and within the criminal justice system.
“There will be tens of thousands of people there in person and around the world watching”, said Andrea Taylor, president and chief executive of the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute in Alabama.
Why do U.S. police keep killing unarmed black men? There is no national-level government data on police shootings.
In recent years, Obama has met with leaders of the Black Lives Matter movement and spoken in detail about how he empathizes with blacks profiled by law enforcement.
This museum, Lewis said, “is the story of life, the story of our lives, wrapped up in a lovely golden crown of grace”.
“A clear-eyed view of history can make us uncomfortable”, Obama said. “And more importantly listen to each other”.
Both could see even more guests as people seek to learn more about black history.
“We want to make sure we reinforce the commitment to preserve African-American history”, said Glen Yonkers, Jr., a member of Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, which was founded at Howard University in Washington. The museum strikes a unique shape on the Mall with its three-tiered bronze exterior panels inspired by an African wooden column. Philip Freelon was the lead architect.
The museums in Philadelphia and Birmingham are part of the Smithsonian community, which means they have the opportunity to share with the new museum and access its collection and other Smithsonian exhibits and items. It includes 12 inaugural exhibitions and close to 37,000 artifacts, but only 3,000 will be on display. Among those relics are auction notices and other documents attesting to the ownership of some humans by others.
The effort to bring this museum to life began decades ago but was finally set in motion in 2003 when Bush signed a bill creating it. “A great nation doesn’t hide its history”, he said.
Speakers at Saturday’s ceremony also included American Express Co. Robert De Niro, Angela Bassett, Will Smith and Patti LaBelle are among those presenting during the dedication. The civil rights icon said the bronze-colored museum “is more than a building, it is a dream come true”.
Actor Samuel L. Jackson, second from left, and Rep. John Lewis, D-Ga., second from right, pose for a photo during a reception in the Grand Foyer of the White House in Washington, Friday, Sept. 23, 2016, for the opening of the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture. “So many people have dreamed about this, fought for this and wanted this to happen”, said USA circuit judge Robert L Wilkins, who wrote the book Long Road to Hard Truth about the struggle to get the museum open.
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Before it’s here, it’s on the Bloomberg Terminal.
