Transcripts For CSPAN Smithsonian 20240706

The committee of House Administration will come to order. I note that a quorum is present. Without objection the chair may declare recess at any time. Also without objection the meeting will remain open for 5 legislative days and members can submit any materials they wish to be in. Thank you members of the committee, secretary bunch for joining us for todays hearing. The Smithsonian Institution is the Worlds Largest educational complex comprised of museums, Educational Resources and research services. The smithsonian preserves heritage and history while sharing knowledge with the world. 21 museums and roughly 137 million objects in this collection visitors have abundance of history and heritage to explore. The smith oh onian receives 1. 14 billion from the federal government in the last fiscal year. Twothirds of its total budget and 4,000 fulltime employees. Today the committee on House Administration which is charged with conducting oversight of the Smithsonian Institution will discuss the institutions operation and longterm goals. Its been 3 years since the committee has held wideranging oversight hearing on smithsonian and a variety of issues have come up during that time. In the last three years the institution has frequently been in the news on hot button cultural topics. We have seen the smithsonian in handful of headlines. The committee will explore how the materials reflect americas diversity of opinions. As taxpayer funded institution the smithsonian must ensure work is not politically partisan or bias. Our job is to ensure smithsonian is acting as responsible steward of taxpayer dollars, the committee will explore two new museums congress authorized and the institutions vision for the facilities. In 2020 congress authorized the creation of National Museum of the american latino the and the Smithsonian American History Museum while placement of the museum looms. Annual plans and congressional budget request outline a robust and complex enterprise but do not articulate a longterm strategy for the two new museums. Without a clear longterm strategy the museums find it hard to balance longterm visions with more mundane daily operations which are critical for success. Today hearing will look at daytoday while looking at longterm goals certainly welcome mr. Secretary for being here as our witness. As the chairman said, since founding more than 175 years ago the smithsonian has become the most visited Museum Complex on the planet. It has grown to 21 museums Numerous Research centers, library system, network of hundreds of affiliates and the national zoo. Its one of the worlds entities, arts and humanities. Smithsonian partnered with nasa to unveil fragment of asteroid currently orbit around the sun, its really remarkable. Smithsonian scientists are studying the asteroid samples to provide insights in how water and organic molecules reached earth billions of years ago. Anyone can go look at this the piece of asteroid for free. Its truly remarkable that we are able to do it. But closer to home, while sad to say goodbye to national zoo giant pandas, americans should take solace that smithsonian expert observation and researching over the next several decades has played significant goal in moving giant pandas off of the endangered species list despite smithsonian many successes it is without challenges and the challenges must be address so the smithsonian can continue Great Mission for the next 175 years and beyond. This year i requested an update from you, mr. Secretary on the smithsonian response to allegations of swallow misconduct from more than a dozen female scientists at the Smithsonian Tropical Institute in panama, deeply unsettling and the conduct completely unacceptable. Im grateful for the secretarys thoughtful response in the civil program, a centralized resource for employees to report harassment and other inappropriate behavior and look forward continued updates this morning. In addition, while i am thrilled congress authorized the National Museum of the american latino and american women History Museum, i remain frustrated that the original house passed legislation was amended to make the law conflict with itself after the house passed legislation declaring Congress Intent that the museums be on the National Mall and even requiring certain locations on the mall be considered the senate added language prohibiting the museums from being built on the National Mall. Obviously that makes no sense, especially since the language expressing Congress Intent and requiring a sign on the mall be considered stayed in the bill. Im hopeful we can Work Together to fix the law to ensure the important new museums take the rightful place on americas front yard. In the meantime, im interested in learning about the progress made in developing exhibitions and programs for the museums. Im especially interested on how the smithsonian ensures it remains curtorial independence as many look for score political points. There arent words in the english language sufficient to capture just how repugnant the and dehumanizing a practice this was earlier this year. I said secretary sent letter asking for details on the smithsonians plan to repatriate and return human remains to victims families and i again appreciate secretarys response detailing the work of the smithsonian new human retains task force as well as, sir, your public apology on behalf of the institution. Im looking forward to hearing more this morning about the work of the task force the and any headway that has been made and repatriation effort and finally i am interested in learning about efforts to strengthen the smithsonian infrastructure and facilities, hope your updates on renovation to air and space museum, my alltime favorite place in the world, status of the deferred maintenance backlog and actions taken to protect against effects of Climate Change. Mr. Secretary, thank you for not only for being here today but for your continued Public Service to the country and with that, mr. Chairman, i yield back. The gentleman yields back, without objection all of the Opening Statements will be part of hearing record if theyre submitted to the city clerk 5 0. Witness will please stand and raise your right hand. Do you solemnly swear or affirm that the testimony that youre about to give is the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth so help you god . I do. Let the record show that the witness answered in the affirmative and may be seated. I will introduce our secretary, lonnie bunch, assumed role on june 16, 2019 as secretary mr. Bunch oversees 21 museums, 21 libraries, the national zoo, Numerous Research centers and several educational units and centers. Previously mr. Bunch served as the founding director of the smithsonians National Museum of africanamerican history and culture. Secretary brunch we appreciate you being here today and look forward to your testimony. As reminder we have read your written statement and appear in full in written record. Under Committee Rule 9, theres limit oral presentation of summary unless extended. Please remember to turn on microphones so members can hear you and i recognize you secretary bunch for five minutes. Thank you so much. Chairman style, Ranking Member morelli and all members of the committee, thank you for the opportunity to testify today. I hope you do take time to see artifacts, the original cheese head to be able to look at a morning watch from Mary Todd Lincoln and pins in the Suffrage Movement. I want you to spend time looking at that today. Since i became secretary in 2019 ive been impressed and gratified by support of congress and the American Public. We hope to advance the civic scientific life of this nation. The support we receive enables us to engage with and educate people on important topics likes the essence of the american experience, the diversity of world cultures, the sustainability of the planet and the nature the of the universe. One of my goals as secretary is to reach every home and every classroom in the country sharing our content to celebrate our achievements and help grapple with contemporary issues and work towards a better shared future. Our Educational Programming is becoming more crystallized as we establish strategic collaboration with organizations like the 4 age clubs, boys and girls clubs of america and pbs. We hope to watch with smithsonian educators centered around civic engagement. At the same time we are brig our content to others through the partnerships, for example, we are currently developing a Pilot Program into the boys and girls clubs focusing on civics and history which we hope to take nationwide in 2026. As you mentioned worldclass scientific endeavors also continue with efforts helping the first image, capturing first image of a black hole to running century long reforestation project. Not only does our science provide incredible return on investment to the American People but can only happen at the smithsonian and work that researchers around the world rely upon and as i look ahead to the future of this institution, im excited about what lies ahead for the Worlds Largest museum, education and research complex. The nations 250th anniversary, we launching point of transformation of the smithsonian into an institution that better meets the needs of the nation. That pivotal event will not only serve as celebration of what weve been but also give us a glimpse at a more nimble and Effective Institution proving that smithsonian matters today, tomorrow and every day and in every part of the country. To coincide with that the event, we are programming that we will both celebrate and contemplate who we are as a nation and smithsonian place in it and invite americans to explore all corners of our complex histories and find ways of moving Forward Together in our shared future. The renovated air and space museum should be fully open to the public in time for the innovation and ive asked my team to work towards temporary opening of the castle so the public can exemployer and celebrate for the 250th. The world is rapidly changing and with it so are the needs and expectations of the American People. As we look ahead to the next 250 years the smithsonian will need to adapt. We want to become more digital institution that uses tools like ai in the a responsible way. We want to provide resources to help communities understand challenges like the challenge of Climate Change. We must help our citizens become more engaged and help them become better informed and have civil discourse on important topics that affect us all. And building this smithsonian and american womens History Museum and latino will tell a robust story. As impressive that the museums will be when they rise to the National Mall, they will only represent a fraction of of the institutions transformation years to come. We will take advantage of technology and partnerships to reach more people than ever and we will charter bold new course for smithsonian that strengths our shared future. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to testify before you today and im happy to answer any questions that you have. Thank you very much secretary bunch, thanks for being here today. I will recognize for five minutes for the purpose of asking questions. I would like to drill down into the broader spending request of the smithsonian in particular balancing the backlog of maintenance with the two new museums that are coming online in not too distant future. As i understand it with smithsonian, theres 2 billion in backlog for maintenance of current facilities, is that accurate . Thats correct. Weve done a new program that gives more assessments but its a little bit more than 2 billion. Inside of that is smithsonian request for funding to congress, seems half of the broader recommended range of 2 to 4 of the physical plans aggregate current meaning are we falling further behind on maintenance if we fulfill the smithsonians request. The plan would be if we utilize all the resources that you give us and part of what im trying to do now is be more strategic in terms of how we utilize our capital budgets as well as maintenance budget and so therefore, we have done things like we have built the air and space museum it allowed us to reduce our current backlogs but i think the reality is we need the support that you will give us and any dollars that you give us we do use towards building to make sure we handle backlog as effectively as we have. The amount of funds requested is sufficient to in the fall further behind in the backlog or you feel thats sufficient amount to not fall behind . I think itll help us move forward but we are going to continue to ask for more moving forward in the future. Okay, the reason i ask is we have the two new museums that we are looking to bring in line, uniquely qualified in that role of your previous work on africanamerican museum and we look at that, the broader focus here on the Strategic Planning and your efforts to bring that forward and whether or not we are prepared to move that forward. Could you give color as to where youre at in the broader Strategic Planning process for the two new museums in particular, the location of the two new museums . The challenge with the two new museums are that we have to make sure that we get the Site Selection resolved because theres very little we can do without the Site Selection. We have been very successful with fundraise and we have raised over 60 million for each museum already, but that will really only grow once we can point towards here is where the museums will be, part of what we have done, though, recognize that we dont want to wait until these museums are up. There may be 10, 12 years away. So we have begun to do things like more online work to do history about women or the latino community. Weve also created a new latino exhibition gallery that will allow us to demonstrate to the public here is the stories we can tell and get people excited about it. The bottom line is that we are ready to move forward. We are going to need, however, more support to be able to build the staff for those museums, to be able to make sure that we can get the ultimate decisions about site and ultimately construction. What i will say, though, based on my experience is that we are able to as we build the new museums, we are able to get funds to pay for construction, hvac and a lot of things that we normally have to ask congress for and its really a crucial movement in the history of these museums to see where we are going to be over the next year. In the time that i have left. They got to see pandas before they departed. For our kids, love the pandas but as we di in and we think of panda diplomacy, theres a policy side to this as well. One is i understand it the the national zoo paid china 10 million to loan the giant pandas for ten years, is that accurate . Thats correct. And then that loan was extended throughout that Time Beginning from from 2000 all the way through this year . We negotiate every year to extend the loan. If the pandas came back then, is that on going negotiation . We would like to have the pandas back and we would like to negotiate with the chinese to do just that. Any time has the smithsonian ever compromised any public content to appease or accommodate china or Foreign Government . Definitely not. Do have policies in place that that would happen during the negotiation . We do. We make sure that the as part of the negotiations the staff recognizes that this is really about the science and the pandas and not basically compromise our status in working with the china. Thank you very much. I now will reck needs the Ranking Member for five minutes for the purpose of asking questions. Thank you, mr. Chairman, thank you, mr. Secretary for being here. I do want in my testimony focus for a moment or two on the smithsonians past practice that i mentioned of taking human brains from deceased black and Indigenous People without their study or consent. You mentioned in your testimony the formation of the Human Remains Task force which has been tasked with determining the best way to return and repatriate human remains. Whether or not representatives from those impacted communities are part of the task force and can give us timeline for what you think is a reasonable period when the remains will be repatriated and sort of how you measure the success of this effort and given that timeline and given the task in front of you. Like you, i was very upset when i learned about the human remains and my goal was very quickly to the really have a new policy that allows us to understand how we would return remains and researching we could do. I put together committee of people, the best scholars, community people, both internal and external to the smithsonian to help us think the issues through to ask fundamental questions, whats the difference between human remains, do we have consent versus that we didnt have consent. How do we return the human remains, how do we work with communities . My goal is to get this report and to use that report to then reshape the smithsonian policies and my goal would be that over the next year we will be able to frame the policies, understand what the resources are needed to be able to return material but also to be able to make clear that if we are doing any research on human remains here is the limit, here is what is possible. Obviously consent would be a big part of that and im assuming would be mandatory minimum that people give consent prior to demise and family members be at least aware of or if its post and thats ongoing forward. I would love to continue to be kept abreast of your efforts over the next year. How are you dealing with the i dont know how many remains you still have. I know some had been returned but i think relatively small number and i think the amount, the number was well in excess of 200 brains and human remains. Most are of native american but we are looking at other communities and what we are doing by this task force is to help me understand what do we need to put in place to the return, to reach out to communities, my goal would be that material that we do not have consent for we should work for returning so my goal is to get an understanding to get all of that and i will make determinations to move forward. Your expectation on when you believe that will be done and begin to move forward on returning materials. Thank you for that the and i look forward continued been updated on that. I want to switch topics with my remaining minute that i have. You express support building latino and Womens Museum in the National Mall. Why do you believe its important for them to be there as opposed to other places . Building the museum of africanamerican culture was transformative not just for museum but the country. National mall is where the world learns to be an american and something powerful about having the museums on the mall so that people can understand they are part of the story and visitation they deserve. The great strength of the smithsonian is people will come and wrestle with questions that they wont in their hometowns so we want people to do this. I think its really important that we build these museums on the mall so that they can be samples of america for the world to see. Very good. Thank you, mr. Chair, i will yield back my time. Recognized for five minutes. Thank you mr. Chairman, secretary bunch, good to see you again. Appreciate you being here. Appreciate what some of what you just said regarding the american story and its very important that we preserve the history and the heritage of our nation. One of those just being who we are as a people as well as our government and our amendments, First Amendment right. Comes up quite often these days and i explain to people, the First Amendment doesnt exist to the only protect the speech youre comfortable with but the things youre uncomfortable with and brings me to one of my favorite museums that you have as an air force veteran, as ayeuater and enthussists and close to capitol hill and i tend to visit frequently when you do movie nights. A lot of great things that go on there. Still a large concern when you talk about the american story. You have right to express political beliefs as well. Weve been ensured that this was a stake but is this reflected by a broader bias or this is an isolated incident . This is clearly an isolated incident. Think of that day, march for life, hundreds of people that went to different sparts of the smithsonian and accepted no problem at all. It was a mistake where we have a policy that says you cannot bring in posters and placards but other than that you enter in and new security let them in. We corrected it that day. I also then made sure that we had new training and we have a policy that any time theres a demonstration on the mall, that morning all security are briefed on what the rules are to be able to make sure that peoples First Amendments right are not challenged by the smithsonian. So this was a mistake and i think weve corrected it and weve not had any other problems since that moment. Okay. And so are there any other changes other than the ones that you just outlined that you have made, increased training and better communication . I think thats whats important to make sure that works and test to make sure we get a briefing, everything happens. We are on this the as part of the process of improving the smithsonian communication. Even if there was a demonstration somebody shows up as a life matter shirt. Move onto another subject in 2022, smithsonian hosted an annual folklike festival with the United Arab Emirates ministry of culture and youth as headline sponsor. This followed announcement in 2017 agreement of an agreement between the smithsonian, the uae, to collaborate on cultural content and Capacity Development programs. It opens the question as to why foreign nation would be allowed to sponsor an american folk like festival in the first place or as you said the american the american story and what if any influence uae had on territorial decisions for the folk like festival. The Washington Post reported that u. S. Intelligence officials had compiled classified report on the uaes attempts to influence domestic american politics. So my question is does the smithsonian accept money from foreign nations to fund its exhibits and events . The smithsonian, the folk like festival is one of those moments where we do a Domestic Program and an international program. Okay. And the smithsonian has received support from nations that are being part of the festival but we make clear, however, is that that support has nothing to do with content. They are not involved in the decisions about what is actually shown, it really is to support to bring performers and scholars over but we are very clear that money from anyone really does not get the smithsonian what the interpretations, what the work that we are trying to do. So what policies do you have in place or programs in place to ensure that foreign that Foreign Investment will not influence in one way or the other what you does play or what goes in the museums or what you highlight . We have written policies to do that. We also have several opportunities to vet these things so that when issues are brought forward as a festival, for example, the responsibility of the festival director to make sure that his or her staff are following the rules. Then we bring it up to higher level within the administration to make sure that there arent those moments where funding really reshapes the kind of work we want to do. Thank you, i yield back. The gentleman yields back. Well, welcome secretary bunch, pleasure to see you again. As the representative of alabamas civil rights district and daughter of lifelong educators i am committed to doing the work to ensure that we preserve, protect and tell the complicated story of our nation. Every davis or thes from across the globe come to nations capitol to explore exhibits that inform the events that shaped the foundation of america. In your testimony, you mentioned that one of the goals that you have in the 15year Strategic Plan for the smithsonian is to increase their reach in education, scholarship and Scientific Research and i know that you believe as i do that every home and every classroom should have the advantage of understanding and knowing our Great American history. I also believe to be accessible for everyone not just those that can afford to the nations capital, this is why im excited that the alabama humanitarian humanity, sorry, Humanity Alliance and the Smithsonian Museum on main Street Program collaborated to host a traveling exhibit called cross roads, change in Rural America. The exhibit explored ways that Rural Communities have evolved over the 20th century, in fact, one of the five stops along the way was the selma to montgomery trail which has been a project of mine from the moment i got into congress. This exhibit highlights the black belt of which selma is considered the queen city and youve had many chapters that have had an opportunity to really play a role. I want to encourage those collaborations and hope that you will continue to make sure that in your Strategic Plan that you carve out resources so that the smithsonian exhibits can really travel to every classroom and every corner of america. In your testimony, you mentioned several ways in which youve try today expand the smithsonians reach both through hightech digitalization as well as initiative. Another way is through affiliates program. The Birmingham Civil Rights Institute and phenomenal teaching experience for those of us who live in birmingham and wanted to know the civil rights history. How do you think affiliates benefit from the smithsonians central and i also want to get to the importance of your curated independence when it comes to, you know, when it comes to your curations, i think it gets to my friends concern of foreign influence. I would also suggest that you should have independ in telling the story so that we get the full story and not just part of a story. So can you start with the Affiliation Program and then talk about what your definition of curated independence is. Im convinced that the smithsonian has to really have relationships in Rural Communities throughout the United States and we are looking at all the resource. Some is digital, of course, but others are the kinds of inexpensive traveling exhibition that is can be in many parts of the country. We also bring more of our staff, making presentations that are basically created a Rural Initiative to say that the smithsonian needs to make sure that its paying attention and its learning from Rural Communities. So making sure the smithsonian is beyond washington is one of my major commitments but the other point that you touched on is really important to me as former curator is that the smithsonians greatest strength is its scholarship, curtorial integrity and opportunity to bring the best think thing from around the world to shape what the smithsonian does. And there are always disagreements over the subject that is we explore, the interpretations but the smithsonian is never a place that is really about from the left or from the right. Its really a place that says what is the best scholarship and what things we can explore and that means there are times that we will raise issues that not everyone will be excited about or not everyone is going to understand. I think the great strength of the smithsonian is that its job in some ways is to use our scholarship to define reality and giver hope and i think thats what we do when we have the independence to do the work we try to do. Well, congratulations on your tenure so far and we look forward to your continued success. Thank you. The gentlewoman yields back. Mr. Griffin is recognized for five minutes. Thank you, mr. Secretary and i truly appreciate it in your opening that you want to explore all corners of complex history and that can get dicey. The Affiliate Program is good, in my district bristol, virginia, the split city, virginia, tennessee, we have birthplace of Country Music and another view of Rural America just like its important that we study all these. Youre already planning for our nations 250th anniversary. Im excited about it and i appreciate you mentioning that in your opening. I assume that the pillars of your Strategic Plan, digital, nimble, trusted source, science and education will be critical in guiding those efforts, am i correct on that . Thats absolutely right . Yeah. And as part of that complex history and all corners and certainly things we can highlight that are not positive but im hopeful that for our 250 theth anniversary you will be depicting things that i think we can all be proud of, patriotic depiction of our nations founding and of the founders and their contribution. Not perfect. We need to focus on all of it it and agree on that as well but we need to the include the declaration of independence and showcasing while in the perfect those documents layed the ground work not just for the United States and our ability to create a more perfect union, but as guideposts for the world as we move to a better world again not just here but worldwide. Can you share some of your thoughts on that and where youre going to the 250th anniversary and what you plan to highlight . I believe its crucially important for the smithsonian to be part of the glue that helps hold the country together and part of that is really celebrating our history. Exploring the fact that the Founding Fathers and mothers, the founding documents shaped not only who we are but who the world is. We want to be able the celebrate that and we also want to be able to talk about america as working progress and what you see are many challenging moments that there are people that are really trying to say how does america live up to those ideals, how does america really build on the declaration, the constitution. We want people to understand that we are going to celebrate a country and we are also going to commemorate because we want to understand that by looking at the past, the full past it doesnt mean that we are running away from difficult things nor does it mean that we are really being critical of the country. What we are really saying is that america is a place that has changed over time and part of that change has been trying to live to those ideals. So we want to celebrate that by telling a full story of the country. Well, i do believe that what happened was exceptional, not perfect but exceptional and truly has changed the world. And i think we should celebrate, so i appreciate hearing those comments. I want to switch gears a little bit. Im interested in all kinds of things, particularly the Natural Sciences but can you describe some of the biggest and most Impactful Research project that is the smith on abe is currently working on . Oh, my goodness. I know, theres a lot. Im excited about the work that we are doing in space. Discovering image of the black hole and we really are doing things that are going to the allow us to educate the public but challenge science to do more. Im also really taken by the work that we are doing at the Tropical Research institute, the 100yearold study that helps us understand Climate Change and reforestation. In some ways what i think is wonderful about the smithsonian science is that it really is science but its also science contextualized. We help people understand what it is for the Broader Society and culture. For me science has always been the pilars of the smithsonian and im so proud that it is. And im glad. I really hope that you all continue to do good work. What what percentage of your budget is dedicated to pursuing Scientific Research . I would say that im not sure exactly the number but i would say at least a third. And just because im curious because i said i love the Natural Sciences. Do you use the creatures at the zoo to check into things like animal intelligence . A lot of work is animal conservation, the work with the pandas, we do a lot of work with cheetahs and variety of animals. Ic that we do a lot on conservation and then our research is used by the scientists that are exploring other aspects of animal intelligence so in some ways the smithsonian is foundational to what other scientists are also doing. All right, thank you, my time is up. The gentleman yields back. Dr. Murphy is recognized for five minutes. Thank you, mr. Chairman. Thank you, mr. Chairman. Thank you for coming and visiting with us today. Ive always been a great, great lover of museums wherever i travel i will always go to a museum because im a lover of history, im a lover of the human experience. A few months ago i took my my 26yearold son, we went hes in nascar, we went over to look at some of the exhibits there and, its wonderful to see such joy that he had in a field that hes now fully immersed in. I will tell you, i love my experience but a couple of things bothered me there. You said earlier that you dont believe partisanship and everything. Let me ask you again about partisanship, where does that belong in our smithsonian . Smithsonian is a place that shouldnt be partisan. Its a place thats driven by scholarship. It doesnt mean there arent interpretations that people dont always agree with but we are driven by scholarships. What really bothered me what stiffened me up because i didnt understand, i didnt expect it from the institution is that there was an exhibit on nixon and it wasnt a cartoon, something put up by smithsonian staff that described nasty nixon boom, boom, boom. They said something also pejorative of ronald reagan. On a written placard from the smithsonian and it took me back, thats not the smithsonian i remember. And so, you neglect, delving into this the a little bit more, i found contrary to what you said a lot of partisanship, you guys have this wonderful exhibit praising dr. Fauci because misinformation and, nations leading epidemiologist werent true but we found out since that time that dr. Fauci lied. Theres pointblank evidence that this, that he covered up the fact that the virus did come from wuhans lab. So i dont think hes a superstar. I dont think he was praised. He absolutely lie today the American Public and as a physician hes damaged the reputation of the institutes, this was taken by the left praising somebody who lie today the country. Im hopeful that theyll be some revision of whats gone back and actually truth be told that he was praised but then he really was shown that he lied to further his own interest. Let me get Something Back to really, you know, i want you to succeed because when everybody talks about the smithsonian, they talk about greatness. This is all something when you live from a kid, when you make the visit to washington, d. C. Its all about going to the smithsonian. You get in the air space museum, you marvel at things but i will tell you when i saw this exhibit in 2020 that talked about whiteness, whiteness in 2020, here we are we are trying to do to have a society that rather than having all these silos and never being told that youre privileged, youre in this, youre in that and trying to pull things together, partisan politics is now trying to divide us and im going to go through this the and this is just baffling to me. Assumptions about white culture and it says, rugged individualism, family structure, emphasis on scientific method, history, protestant work ethic, religion, no tolerance from deviation from a single god concept. This is absolute antiracial propaganda. Why would anything like this be in the Smithsonian Institute . You were the head of the smithsonian at the time. What it is a document, the whiteness document put online that i put down immediately because i think that the document itself and i do think however its important for the smithsonian to help the country grapple with race and im not going to run away from that but i agree very much that that document is not the kind of document that should be at the smithsonian and its what i think it is, i put that down. How does that help us with race . This is divisive language saying that white people, we dont tolerate any deviation except a singlegod concept. How is that helpful . I dont understand that . I wish someone could explain that to me. Its not white people, its not black people, its not latino people. Were americans and i just this is really it hurts my heart because i think instead of us coming together in the last several years we have put more silos based upon melanin in our skin than history. It is pathetic that the bastion of history in our nation is reinforcing those things so im just sad about that. Thank you, mr. Chairman, i will yield back. Gentleman yields back. Thank you, mr. Chairman. Thank you secretary bunch for being with us this morning. In your Opening Statement you wrote that you believe we should be the smithsonian should be in every home in every classroom in the country and you also stated in your testimony a few minutes ago that the smithsonian should never come from a place of left or right. Secretary, are you familiar, do you know the number of drag show that is the smithsonian hosted in the last 3 years . No, i dont. Six. And four of those were targeted at children. Going back to june 27th of 2020, an online event at the American Art Museum listed under the kids and families category, virtual drag queen story time ruth brings fun for the whole family the as she reads classic Nursery Rhymes and tales for children. June 5th, 21. June 4, 22. Another event targeted at children. My question is this, how does hosting drag shows for children help the smithsonian achieve their mission of catalyzing Public Engagement by learning by connecting the Knowledge Resources and expertise of the smithsonian can Vital Network of cultural and educational organizations, what culture is exposing children to overly sexual material appropriate . I think its not appropriate to expose children to drag shows. Im surprised and i will look into that. Thank you. The recent one was actually jun. That was not geared to the children at all in new york city. But how is that actually relevant to the education aspect. Even if its not to children, why are we talk thing about that issue . I think its porn many other things that we should be looking at. And we are doing so much more. That is a small part of whatever we do and the reality is that the smithsonian is trying to make sure it embraces totality who we are as americans but it is not the major part of what we do at all. Well, i appreciate that its not a major and i appreciate your opportunity to look into that. Not to pivot, let me also ask one more question, were there any fund for those show that is youre aware of . I have to look into that. I know the smithsonian is used in a variety of ways but im not sure. Im pivoting now, how does the smithsonian plan to ensure that the Womens Museum represents a wide diversity of thought and perspective among american women and specific plans and initiatives that youre looking for. Helping people recognize in new ways the names they know to find new stories that they dont know anything about but to basically say that we want to use womens history as lens to understand what it means to be an american, i think we are clear that as we move forward we will hire scholars and curators and begin to develop what are the ideas that we will explore. Thats in the future. My goal is to recognize that we have to tell a broader story but my goal is to make sure that this is a story shaped by scholarship that help us understand. Do you believe that you will have initiatives included in the potential exhibit that is also reflect the Christian Community and the conservative Women Organization that has sort of shaped and you actually brought some items from the Suffrage Movement which i appreciate and some of that was very much christianbase focus. Absolutely. The smithsonian will explore a diversity of opinions and that in essence one of the things that the smithsonian has done is really make sure that issues of religion as a followup, mr. Chairman. Ill say that Alice Mary Robertson was first woman to serve in state congress and also first woman to provide, im sorry, preside over the United States house of representatives and so i hope that she will be included in your museum in the future. So with that, mr. Chairman, i yield back. The gentlewoman yields back. Mr. Kerry is recognized for five minutes. Secretary, pleasure to be with you today. I appreciate your testimony. Im going to go into a couple of things. I know the Ranking Member ive had the discussion. Are you familiar with the arts and industry building . Yes, i am. What is the current what is currently, what is that building currently being used for . The building is second favorite building on the mall and that the arts industry building is being used for the activities and events right now. The challenge with the arts industry is that when it was created in 1881 it was the state of the art museum. Unfortunately its not now. And theres millions of dollars that turn that into a more formal museum. Let me ask you, were there any concrete plans in the museum in the years that you know of. At this stage we want to use museum as part of celebration for the anniversary and we are developing what those plans can be. Well, one of the things that and your staff has been great to work with, i actually got a tour of that facility. I have 3 children, 22yearold and i have a fouryearold and a 2yearold. So we came so they came to visit to me here in dc with the two and the fouryearold and its been a while since i had been looking at museums, children museums to be honest with you. I noticed that we do have a National Childrens museum but right now its currently occupying what was space it was for other federally federal building. Im actually the lead sponsor for the National Childrens museum act which is going to require gsa to pay the rent. After going through that building i truly believe that this would be a perfect location for a National Childrens museum and i understand because of the windows and i know that theres been a lot of, there was a remodel done in 1940s that took some of the space and require a lot of work. I think that the Childrens Museum is doing a fantastic job right now but as you said and i think your point was really well clear, the National Mall is where people come to learn about the american story. And i truly believe like you thats probably my one of my favorite buildings on the malibu i think it will be a great way for our children to have a place to go and to learn and you dont have to worry about historical documents. Not to mention then, of course, its located right in front of the carousel. I know round about numbers. Its hard to get you an exact number. For example, we spend over 300 million just to stabilize the roofs. I saw that. Millions of dollars to make sure they are used in any way effectively for the public. I think if Congress Says to us explore that question, we will. And i agree very much that theres almost nothing more powerful than a good Childrens Museum and i think that while the smithsonian does a nice job with young people in various stages, i think the Childrens Museum is a very powerful and important thing to happen and wed love to have you help us talk about whats possible. Well, and i appreciate that, mr. Secretary, because i will tell you, i was very impressed with and ive gone to a lot of Childrens Museums as you can imagine now. And we have a wonderful facility in columbus thats called cosi, handson facility. I know that indianapolis does a good job and i think the one that we have in dc with the limited funds that they have they do a remarkable job but it was surprising to me that we dont have Something Like that on the mall and i truly believe just looking at the building, the maggesty of that building, the history of that building, looking at some of the pictures, i do believe its a type of facility that could be utilized for hands on for children in the learning of our country. Im going to pivot real quick because i know that theres some other questions. I only have 40 seconds but what is the smithsonians longterm plan to the address deferred maintenance and you can do that in 30 seconds, youll be a miracle worker. [laughter]. Pursuit of a better life something that im deeply proud of and my family story has been one of success. The American Dream of hard work and freedom to pursue Economic Opportunity has been filled for Many American latinos and we want a museum that can proudly reflect this point of view and journey. With that in mind, i am a little concerned with what ive read in the news about the gallery and the exhibits that it produces which some say depict victims as traders and people not fully invested. Due to violence, political and economic turmoil inflicted by communist governments and insurgents. As the National Museum committed to telling they experienced Latin Americans phase in their contributions to the nation . There is no doubt that is our priority. The best way i can explain that to you is the gallery ought to be a testing place it should be a series of eight or nine or ten exhibitions that have been before the buildings so we make sure that weve made the bid. The museum that tells the most difficult stories of resiliency and hope. In the authorization for the museum of the american latino its written of the board of trustees is responsible for ensuring and i quote, the exhibits and programs reflect the diversity of the political viewpoints held by latinos of the United States on the events and issues relating to the history of latinos in the United States of america. Its one of the most important things we do. The diversity of opinions into andstories and i can assure you. And you mentioned the specific exhibit i guess is a test. As a former Museum Director yourself, how will you address concerns about political bias and exhibits . Putting together a Diverse Group of scholars that would shape what the museum would do. A second ive created a process where we vent exhibitions early in the process. What ive done is at a second ballot that allows us to look at exhibits to make sure the museum is telling the story for the nonpartisan point of view. I hope that continues and i hope that is the mission because i dont believe that exhibits should be used as test. When the smithsonian that is in institution people travel throughout the world to visit and we shouldnt have exhibits that are test cases. They should be tried and true and vetted so that you are living out the mission of what we are supposed to be doing there. What, i mean, its not that we are just trying anything willynilly. Its to see how the public engages around certain ways. So, for me that was the key to actually take examples over a period of eight or nine years and say heres where we can do this better and differently and where the public engages in we need to teach the public better. For me its one of the tools to make sure the museum will be what we want it to be when it opens. The gentleman yields back. We concluded the questions but in consultation with the Ranking Member we know you brought five items out of a collection of about 137 million items and one of them of course caught my attention because im told its the original cheese head. I would love to yield to you five minutes or more if you need to just so you can walk through the items you brought before us because the history and the richness that of the Smithsonian Institution has in its collection is so incredibly unique. So if you will i will give a few minutes to describe the items before us. Theres 155 million objects in its collection, so we want to give a few we can look at. Obviously they had from 1990 crucially important because it is a symbol of wisconsin, the green bay packers, which the giants defeated. But it is an example of [inaudible] [laughter] thats important. The other thing this was used by a puerto rican brigade who we want to be able to use that to tell that story. You also have womens suffrage, women demanding they have the right to vote and they were sort of then arrested into these were opinions to commemorate that. We also have Mary Todd Lincolns watch so when lincoln was assassinated this watch was given to her as a way to always make sure she kept able lincoln close so we have an array of things to give you a different story. The last piece is a piece of trench art from world war i. There were these moments many of the soldiers created art and this is a piece that was created out of shells that is in the shape of the book but was used to store material. But again it demonstrates the array of things that are part of the smithsonian collection. I would say to you anytime you want to come and have me give you a tour, please let me know. We thank you. Maybe the Ranking Member and i can take you up on that. It is a terrorist institution and one that is noted by i think all of our members that we enjoy being able to visit, and we appreciate the testimony here today. Members of the committee may have some additional questions and we ask you please respond to those in writing. Without objection each member has five legislative days to submit material into the record or to revise and extend the remarks. If there is no further business i think the members for their participation. Without objection, the meeting stands adjourned. [inaudible conversations] [inaudible conversations] to de