The NMAAHC: A Mecca for Black History

“A wonderful history lesson happening right before my eyes.” –Linda Mathews

Hey, family!

Before the month ends, I wanted to do a Black History Month feature post. While Black History Month is an annual celebration of achievements by African Americans and a time for recognizing the central role of Black people throughout history, it is important to note that Black History IS U.S. history.

AND that there’s so much more to Black history than Martin Luther King Jr. and Rosa Parks. Don’t get me wrong. MLK and Ms. Parks were trailblazers and it is important to learn about their contributions… But there are hundreds and thousands of other people and events that also deserve praise and celebration— Not just the ones we learn about in school and certainly not just in the month of February, but all year round.

And what better place to learn about and celebrate our history than the new mecca for all things Black history: The National Museum of African American History and Culture (NMAAHC)! It is the ONLY national museum devoted exclusively to the documentation of African American life, history, and culture.

The NMAAHC was established by an Act of Congress in 2003, following decades of efforts to promote and highlight the contributions of African Americans. To date, the Museum has collected more than 36,000 artifacts and nearly 100,000 individuals have become members. The Museum opened to the public in September 2016.

This past January, while I was at home in Baltimore for winter break, my mom and I were FINALLY able to visit the NMAAHC. Our home in Baltimore is just a short one-hour drive from D.C. and we stayed overnight so that we could spend two days at the museum. The museum is in an excellent location— right on the National Mall. Just a couple tips: Tickets are free, although sometimes there are restrictions, so check their website before you go! We also Ubered from our hotel so that we didn’t have to worry about parking.

The NMAAHC exceeded my expectations. It was everything I needed and more. I encourage each and every one of you to visit the NMAAHC. It was extraordinary. There’s so much that I could say, but I promise not to talk you to death. For this post, I drifted from my typical play-by-play format and did a mini interview with my mom about her experience.

Enjoy!

Amanee: 

What did you think about the organization and the design of the exhibits?

Linda: 

I really loved how detailed the exhibits were— Most of it was history before my time, but a lot of it wasn’t. I remember growing up and living through the Vietnam War, the riots, MLK being killed— So much happened during the time that I was alive. For some of it, I was too young to pay attention to, but I knew that it was happening.

Amanee: 

How did you feel about the museum overall?

Linda: 

I just felt so proud of the work that people put into making sure that it was so well-done and in so much detail. The exhibits were enormous and there’s so much to see! The architecture of the building was really interesting. The way that they conveyed the information was outstanding. All of it was just outstanding.

Amanee: 

What was something that stood out to you about our visit?

Linda: 

I was really impressed that there were so many different ethnicities visiting the museum. It wasn’t just Black people, which is great. (Like I said, Black history is U.S. history!)

Amanee: 

What are some of the memories that the museum brought back?

Linda:

Right after Martin Luther King Jr. was killed, I was in D.C. and I remember looking outside of the hotel we were staying in… You could see the National Guard patrolling the streets. There was a curfew and you couldn’t go out because of the riots. I was only 16. Seeing the pictures and remembering what that was like brought back a lot of emotion and sad memories. It’s hard to describe. It was sad and it was scary all at the same time.

It’s different because it’s your own history. There were people there who weren’t African American and I can’t imagine that it was the same for them. Unlike going to any other museum, it evoked emotions. I could feel myself just getting filled up. You’re looking at artifacts that were the real deal. They weren’t constructed to look like something— they were the actual items and that was lot to take in. And some of it made you happy—Costumes and instruments, Chuck Berry's big red Cadillac, but for me, the history in the lower levels was the most impressive to me.

Amanee: 

What were some of your favorite exhibits?

Linda: 

I like history. So I loved all of it, but the older history… Like the reconstruction of the slave cabin— it was pretty incredible to see. And the examples of the slave chains—that was one of the first things we saw.

   

   

Amanee: 

What did you think about the interactive sit-in exhibit?

Linda: 

It made me think of my friend, Judge Robert Bell. When he was a student, he was arrested because he participated in a lunch counter sit-in in at the Hooper's Restaurant in Baltimore. He went onto Harvard Law School and became the first African American Chief Judge for the Maryland Court of Appeals. The lunch counter was eerie—People threw hot water and food and did whatever they could to torture them… Just sitting there thinking about those kids and what they had to go through— it was really emotional.

  

Amanee: 

Was it what you expected?

Linda:

 I didn’t know what to expect. I knew that people talked about how wonderful it was— but even the descriptions didn’t do justice to what it was like to actually see it. You have to go there to experience it for yourself to get the full effect of what it’s like.

Amanee: 

Would you go back to the NMAAHC again?

Linda: 

Absolutely. It’s something that you could see over and over again and not get bored or see something that you missed the first time.

Amanee: 

What was it like going to the museum with me?

Linda: 

It was great! I could talk to you about things that you studied— the same things that I lived through. Especially when we were talking about when I had a chance to meet members of the Black Panther Party when I was in high school.

Amanee: 

What type of lasting impression did the museum leave you with?

Linda: 

It’s so incredible to know my children and grandchildren and great-grandchildren and great-great grandchildren will have a place where they can go and see all of these events that happened in OUR history. Before this was created, there wasn’t a place where they could do that. And that’s remarkable.

I absolutely loved that I was able to visit the NMAAHC with my mom. My favorite part was observing her react to the exhibits. It makes me emotional just thinking about it… It’s history for me, but she lived through all of that. My grandparents and my great-great grandparents lived through all of it. I already had a great appreciation for African American history but just seeing all of that in one building made me so incredibly proud to be Black. I will cherish that experience for the rest of my life.

As always, thank you so much for reading. This post is really special to me. I hope you all love it as much as I do! Have you been to the NMAAHC? What were your thoughts? Also, what did you think about the Q&A format? Should I switch it up more often? Leave me a comment!

-A.

P.S. If you follow me on Instagram, you’ve seen my daily Black History facts of the day. I do this every year because 1) I love Black history and 2) There’s just SO MUCH that people just don’t know about. I’ve learned a lot myself! If you don’t follow me, feel free to do so! I saved all of the facts in the “BHM 2020” story highlight: @amaneeee