My first visit to NMAAHC in DC
It's a popular place to be and I was ecstatic to see people learning more about our true histories. For far too long in this country, too many of us have been left out of the history books and our stories not shared. I had to wait until college to take my first Native Studies class and graduate school for my first African American history course when I should have been receiving this education K-12. The majority of Americans, have a problem with erasure, have only learned half-truths, or been taught a master narrative that did not include Indigenous, African American, Latina/o, Asian American voices. "The power of a master narrative is hard to understate." I strongly encourage you to learn more, dismantle that master narrative, and seek out those spaces to help you better understand.
There is a lot to see, feel, and reflect on in the museum and I plan on visiting several more times over the next few months. It’s was an amazing experience and I encourage you to make time, plan, and be present. We signed up for tickets via 'same day online timed passes' before 7am and even this was almost too late. Only five tickets remained.
We got through the bottom floors, it was crowded and missed some sections, and missed the top floors. Which I have been told are just as incredible. The design of the building and exhibits are so that visitors start from the 1400s, the lowest level in the building, and work their way up to the present day.
Here are several photos and videos from my first visit to the NMAAHC.
A people's journey, a nation's story.
NMAAHC Website