The Japanese American National Museum (JANM) commends Lonnie G. Bunch III, who on Sept. 8 announced his retirement as secretary of the Smithsonian Institution, for his leadership in the museum field, his commitment to exploring the full complexity and diversity of U.S. history, and his courageous work to uphold truth and professional standards in the face of the current administration’s ongoing efforts to undermine the Smithsonian and museums nationwide.
At the same time, JANM decries the administration’s attempts to reshape Smithsonian museums to conform to its prescribed historical interpretation of history and to remove diverse voices and stories.
“Lonnie Bunch is an exceptional leader who has shown unbelievable courage in the museum field throughout his three decade career,” said Ann Burroughs, president and CEO of JANM. “His work as founding director of the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture (NMAAHC) and his advocacy as secretary to advance the Smithsonian American Women’s History Museum and the National Museum of the American Latino leave a lasting legacy: a vision in which all American stories are valued, honored, and shared.
“We applaud his strength as a voice for truth, scholarship, and professional excellence through nearly two years of ugly, unjust attacks on the Smithsonian. Museums must be places of truth, where we learn and confront the complexity of our nation’s histories – its triumphs and its mistakes. We must all continue to stand against government efforts to erase, censor, or politicize that history.”
Bunch w as named the Smithsonian’s 14th secretary in June 2019, becoming the first Black American and first historian at the helm of the institution. He was previously the founding director of the African American History and Culture Museum, and had worked as a curator at the American History Museum and an education specialist at the National Air and Space Museum earlier in his career, totaling more than three decades of service at the Smithsonian. Bunch also led the Chicago History Museum, a non-Smithsonian organization, from 2000 to 2005.
Rep. Doris Matsui (D-Sacramento), a member of the Smithsonian Board of Regents, also issued a statement: “Lonnie Bunch has spent his life telling America’s full story, with honesty, with humanity, and a deep belief in the power of history to help us better understand one another. His leadership has made the Smithsonian stronger, more inclusive, and more open to the millions of people who look to this treasured institution to learn who we are as a nation.
“Lonnie and I have known each other and worked together for two decades, first when he was director of the National Museum of African American History and Culture and now as secretary. As the Board of Regents’ representative to the museum’s council, I worked alongside him through its development and construction, and saw up close the vision and persistence it took to build a place worthy of the stories it holds.
“Lonnie took the museum from a bold idea to a national treasure, one that faces our painful history squarely and sends every visitor home with hope.
“He brought that same spirit to his time as secretary. Lonnie has led the Smithsonian with grace and integrity through some extraordinarily difficult moments. He never lost sight of what the institution is for: to preserve our history, pursue knowledge, and tell the American story in all of its complexity. Grounded in the truth of that history, he has pushed it to new heights.
“Lonnie has my deepest gratitude for his decades of service and for everything he has done to strengthen the Smithsonian for generations to come. Most people know him as one of the nation’s great historians and cultural leaders. I am proud to say he is my dear friend. I wish him and his family every happiness in this well-earned next chapter.”