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Retiring Smithsonian head Lonnie G. Bunch III: "You can run from history, but you can't hide"
CBS News • • nation
Key Points:
- Lonnie G. Bunch III, the first African American and historian to serve as Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution, has overseen 20 museums and the National Zoo, with a deep passion for history evident since his early career at the National Air and Space Museum.
- Bunch emphasizes the importance of telling truthful and sometimes difficult stories to understand the full scope of American history, comparing incomplete history to receiving only partial medical information.
- The Smithsonian has faced political pressure and criticism from the Trump administration, which accused the institution of promoting a divisive, race-centered ideology and threatened funding cuts, claims Bunch strongly disputes.
- Bunch highlights the National Museum of African American History and Culture, which he helped found, as a pivotal achievement that tells a comprehensive story of America’s past, reflecting both a people's journey and the nation's history.
- As he prepares to retire at the end of the year, Bunch stresses the Smithsonian’s role as America’s collective memory and calls for his successor to be knowledgeable, politically savvy, and courageous in continuing the institution’s mission.
