When Lonnie G. Bunch III walks through the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C., his love of history is on full display.
asserted
love → walk → display
"I just love this museum so much," he said.
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he → love → museum
"I was in North Carolina, Kitty Hawk, and went to see the replica, and I wanted to say, 'We got the real one!'"
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We → go → one
he laughed
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he → laugh → ?
"And it's here in the Smithsonian, so that forever, people are going to be able to say, 'Oh, my goodness,' and really sort of begin to understand the creativity and the joy that is incumbent in the American spirit."
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that → go → spirit
As Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution, Bunch runs the place, overseeing 20 museums and the National Zoo.
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Bunch → run → museums
But it was the Air and Space Museum that launched his career nearly 50 years ago when he was hired by the museum's then-director, former Apollo 11 astronaut Michael Collins.
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he → launch → director
Asked what Collins saw in the 25-year-old historian, Bunch replied, "I think he probably saw passion.
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he → ask → passion
I cared so much about history.
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I → care → history
I didn't understand what I was going to do, but I loved it.
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I → understand → it
Bunch made history himself in 2019, becoming both the first historian and the first African American to serve as Secretary in the Smithsonian's 180-year history.
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Bunch → make → history
At his installation ceremony seven years ago, he said, "We are here speaking in a place as an African American where Fredrick Douglass could not speak, but we are a different institution, we've made great changes and continue to do so.
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we → say → changes
I kept thinking about Frederick Douglass," Bunch told us, "and I really wanted to say, 'He's now speaking.'
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He → keep → us
I just wanted to signal that I will never be afraid of telling truthful stories, no matter how hard or how painful they are."
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they → want → stories
Asked what happens if we don't tell difficult stories, Bunch replied, "It's kind of like, you know, you go to the doctor, you get your physical.
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you → ask → physical
And suddenly, you say, 'Only tell me half about what happened,' right?
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what → say → half
So, you only know a little bit about who you are – you're incomplete."
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you → know → bit
Museums, Bunch says, are the best storytellers in America.
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Bunch → say → America
But over the last year-and-a-half, the Smithsonian itself has become the story.
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Smithsonian → become → year
In March 2025, President Trump issued an executive order excoriating the institution for what it called its "divisive, race-centered ideology," and threatened to cut funding.
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it → issue → funding
And he hasn't held back on social media.
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he → hold → media
In an Aug. 19, 2025 post, the president claimed the Smithsonian's museums were "out of control, where everything discussed is how horrible our county is, how bad slavery was…"
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slavery → claim → control
Asked if his decision to retire had anything to do with pressures from the White House, Bunch replied, "No, not really.
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Bunch → ask → House
And in fact, the challenges that we've experienced are one of the reasons I stayed so long.
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I → experience → reasons
There's a part of me that says I should stay forever to protect the Smithsonian, but also to protect history, as well as sort of dealing with mischaracterizations that the Smithsonian is this place run by left-wing radicals who want to destroy America.
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who → be → America
But that's pretty much how the White House painted Smithsonian leadership when it turned the screws even tighter this past July 4, with a 162-page report blasting its National Museum of American History.
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it → paint → History
It claimed: "It would benefit most Americans, especially parents bringing their children for a tour, if the Smithsonian's flagship history museum had a label at every entrance that reads, 'Warning: The exhibits in this museum were prepared by people who don't want you to love your country.'
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you → claim → country
"I can't even comment on that," said Bunch, "because the people who work at the Smithsonian love their country in profound ways.
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who → comment → ways
You know, the challenge is that often people look for simple answers to complex questions.
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people → know → questions
Among the report's allegations: The museum hasn't done enough to honor the founding fathers.
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museum → do → fathers
"Those stories are there," said Bunch.
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Bunch → say → ?
"Could they be told more expansively?
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they → tell → ?
But I think the reality of saying that they aren't there, that there's not the love – more importantly, not the acknowledgment of the special nature of the Founding Fathers – is wrong."
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they → think → Fathers
Asked if he were personally offended that his patriotism has been questioned, Bunch replied, "Anybody that knows me personally knows my love of this nation.
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that → ask → nation
I can remember every Memorial Day going to parades.
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Day → remember → parades
So, I come at it from a world of, let us love our nation, but let us not be afraid to understand the totality of who we are.
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we → come → totality
I believe very strongly that you can run from history, but you can't hide."
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you → believe → history
That belief was the driving force behind the creation of the National Museum of African American History and Culture, which opened its doors 10 years ago to near-universal acclaim.
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which → drive → acclaim
"There's no doubt that the most important thing I've ever done in my career was be part of building the National Museum of African American History and Culture, no doubt about it," he said.
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he → be → it
"Because that is a museum that says, 'Here is a story of us all.
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story → say → us
…and 2 more, not listed.
The Aporia
