Smithsonian’s African American Museum Accused Of ‘Unjust’ Removals

By Karan Singh 

May 20, 2025

Lenders have accused the National Museum of African American History and Culture of ‘unjustly’ removing artworks from display.

The National Museum of African American History and Culture (NMAAHC), located in Washington, DC, is a part of the Smithsonian and works on promoting the history of African American culture. Last week, a report by the BBC revealed that at least 32 objects of historical and cultural significance, which were loaned to the NMAAHC, were removed from the display. While the museum insisted on this being standard procedure, speaking to the lenders revealed a different story.

Amos C. Brown, who is a civil rights activist, had loaned a Bible that Martin Luther King Jr. once carried during protests. In April, the NMAAHC removed the book from display, citing it a standard practice as the book’s loan tenure was ending in May. But Brown did not view it this way, adding: “I feel it to be very much inhumane, disrespectful and downright unjust.”. Another lender was Liz Brazelton, whose ancestor was the lawyer of the famous slave-turned-activist Solomon Northup. She had loaned his diary to the museum, which the museum returned in March itself (much before the loan tenure’s end in September).

As per the report, all of these points significantly towards the executive policies of US President Donald Trump. In March, Trump announced a major overhaul of museums, including the removal of ‘anti-American content’. The Smithsonian and its subsidiaries (including the NMAAHC) were part of this target list. But even before Trump, the museum of African American history was facing turbulent times; in March, the museum’s director, Kevin Young, stepped down from his post.