The National Museum of African American History and Culture Belongs On Your DC Bucket List!

One of my favorite museums in DC is the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture. The museum was established in 2003 and opened its permanent home in 2016 with a ceremony led by President Barack Obama. It’s free to visit but make sure you reserve a ticket early in the morning before you go because space is limited.

We allocated 1 hour for this museum but it was not nearly enough, and ended up staying there for 3 hours.

It’s a powerful and emotional experience (especially these days with everything going on in our country) where you can learn and re-learn a lot about the history of African Americans. The most impactful part of the museum is that they tell the whole story, even the not so pleasant parts which some people may already know but to see everything laid out so directly can be really heavy. You see the struggle, the racism, the culture, the history, everything.

The museum understands that it might be a lot for some people, so they built in a room (pictured here) called the #ContemplativeCourt with a waterfall meant for quiet reflection. The room is serene and as you stand and think about all you’ve seen, you can look around the room and read different quotes including Dr. Martin Luther King Jr’s words: “We are determined. . . to work and fight until justice rains down like water and righteousness like a mighty stream”.