Museum on black history opens in D.C.
Obama hopes it broadens understanding
WASHINGTON — For over eight years, Barack Obama has sought to explain the African-American experience to the rest of the country. As he inaugurated the National Museum of African American History and Culture on Saturday, the president suggested the new institution might give both sides of the current racial divide a chance to see each other in a way that still eludes the nation.
“We’re not a burden on America, or a stain on America, or an object of pity, or charity for America. We’re America,” the president said. “It reaffirms that all of us are American, that African-American history is not somehow separate from our larger American story, it’s not the underside of the American story.”
At a time when multiple fatal police shootings of African-Americans have roiled cities, Obama argued that a hard examination of the “complicated” and “messy” but “glorious story” of the nation’s past could offer a way forward.
“And yes, a clear-eyed view of history can make us uncomfortable,” he said. “But it is precisely because of that discomfort that we learn and grow.”
After a decadeslong push, ground was broken for the new museum in 2012 on a 5-acre tract near the Washington Monument. Rep. John Lewis, D-Ga., worked with thenSen. Sam Brownback of Kansas, now the state’s GOP governor, to usher legislation through Congress. President George W. Bush signed it into law in 2003.
At the shining bronze-colored beacon on the National Mall, thousands gathered to watch the museum officially open its doors and to be among the first inside — if they were lucky enough to get the much-coveted opening day tickets.
“It’s like walking across the desert and finally getting to a fountain of water to quench your thirst. It’s absolutely breathtaking for me,” said Verna Eggleston, 61, of New York City.
Construction was completed earlier this year on the 400,000-square-foot museum designed by British-Ghanaian architect David Adjaye.
The president’s remarks had a touch of nostalgia: He noted that while he, his wife and daughters have reveled in seeing the Mall from the vantage point of Marine One multiple times, “we don’t have many trips left.”
And during an election season dominated by name-calling and bitter divisions, the event highlighted the rapport the Obamas have developed during their time in office with Bush and his wife, Laura.
Michelle Obama pressed her cheek to the Bushes after walking onstage, and after the ceremony Bush casually tapped Obama to take a photo of his predecessor posing with an African-American family.
“So enough talk,” Obama quipped at the end of his remarks. “President Bush was timing me. He had the over-under at 25. Let us now open this museum to the world.”
Obama and the first lady joined Ruth Bonner, a 99-year-old direct descendant of a slave, and her family as they rang a bell from First Baptist Church of Williamsburg, Va., to signal the museum was open. The church, believed to be among the first Baptist ones organized entirely by black people, got its Freedom Bell in 1886. It will return to the church for its 240th anniversary later this year.
Earlier, Obama spoke of the violence that has come to define relations between communities of color and police, saying he hoped some of the museum exhibits “can help a white visitor understand the pain and anger of demonstrators in places like Ferguson, (Mo.), and Charlotte, (N.C.).”
“But it can also help black visitors appreciate the fact that not only is this younger generation carrying on traditions of the past but, within the white communities across the nation, we see the sincerity of law enforcement officers and officials who, in fits and starts, are struggling to understand and are trying to do the right thing.”
And addressing black activists who have criticized not just law enforcement but the administration itself for failing to address racial disparities more swiftly, Obama pointed to Lewis.
Lewis, who as a student activist led the Selma, Ala., march more than a half-century ago, remains one of the nation’s most iconic civil rights warriors.
“And for young people who didn’t live through the struggles represented here, I hope you draw strength from the changes that have taken place. Come here and see the power of your own agency,” the president said. “See how young John Lewis was. These were children who transformed a nation in a blink of an eye. Young people, come here and see your ability to make your mark.” Associated Press contributed.