Groundbreaking ceremonies for the National Museum of African American History and Culture were underway yesterday on the National Mall in the nation’s capital.
The event was hosted by actress Phylicia Rashad and organized by the museum advisory council. which includes former first lady Laura Bush. Other notables who will serve on the museum council include Oprah Winfrey and Quincy Jones. President Obama addressed those in attendance with a powerful speech about the importance of this type of monument.
“It was here that the pillars of our democracy were built often by Black hands, and it is on this spot, alongside the monuments to those who gave birth to this nation and those who worked so hard to perfect it, that generations will remember the sometimes difficult, often inspirational, but always central role that African-Americans have played in the life of our country,” said Obama, whose own historic journey to the White House will one day be part of the museum’s collection.
This museum has been on the table for almost 100 years, when Civil War vets first unsuccessfully pushed for its construction in 1915. Congress called for its construction again in 1929, but didn’t provide the funding. This time around, President Bush signed a bill in 2003 pledging that Congress fit half of the $500 million cost of the museum.
The museum will include all aspects of the African American experience from the Trans-Atlantic slave trade all the way up to the election of the first Black president of the United States. Other exhibits will include rare photos and personal belongings of Harriet Tubman, the glass coffin of Emmitt Till, and a vintage plane used by the Tuskegee Airmen. With construction already thoroughly underway, the museum’s doors are scheduled to open in 2015.
-ShaBe Allah(@KingPenStatus)