The Smithsonian Institution reportedly has suspended an exhibit intended as a foretaste of the forthcoming National Museum of the American Latino in the nation’s capital. One of the critics whose work inspired the move is calling on Congress to defund the planned museum.
The exhibit “¡Presente! A Latino History of the United States” opened at the National Museum of American History in June 2022. Jorge Zamanillo, director of the forthcoming Latino museum, billed the display as “the first iteration” of his eventual museum.
Shortly after the exhibit opened, however, it faced harsh criticism.
Alfonso Aguilar, president of the Latino Partnership for Conservative Principles; Joshua Treviño, a director at the Texas Public Policy Foundation; and Mike Gonzalez, a senior fellow at The Heritage Foundation, condemned the exhibit as a “disgrace” that offers an “unabashedly Marxist portrayal of history, religion and economics” in an op-ed in The Hill.
Time magazine reported Friday that the Smithsonian suspended another exhibit, focused on civil rights and meant as a further taste of the upcoming museum, following opposition Time traced back to that article.
The now-suspended exhibit would have been “the largest federally funded Smithsonian exhibit on Latino civil rights history,” featuring “student walkouts,