|
[
return to news articles ]
December
17, 2003 - The New York Times
Bush
Authorizes a Black History Museum
By
Lynette Clemetson
WASHINGTON, Dec. 16 - In a brief private ceremony in the
Oval Office, President Bush on Tuesday signed into law legislation
allowing creation of a National Museum of African-American
History and Culture as part of the Smithsonian Institution.
The signing caps a turbulent, nearly century-long quest
for such a museum, giving victory to the legislators, business
people, artists, civic leaders and veterans who have championed
the project.
Despite a lack of fanfare and no public statement from
Mr. Bush, the atmosphere surrounding the event, backers
of the museum said afterward, was heavy with emotion and
historic significance.
"A number of our founders believed that slavery was
the original sin of America," said Senator Sam Brownback,
Republican of Kansas, a sponsor of the museum bill. "Today
we repent of that sin. We repent of segregation, of treating
one group of people as not equal with others, and we ask
for forgiveness and the blessing of reconciliation that
will come forth from this."
Representative John Lewis, the Georgia Democrat who has
sponsored legislation for the museum every year since 1988,
was jubilant after the ceremony, saying: "This has
been a long, hard effort, but we're here today. The whole
story, the complete story must be told. Today in America
we've moved closer, much closer, to a truly interracial
democracy, closer to what Martin Luther King Jr. called
the beloved community."
Though the White House took a low-key approach to signing
the measure, authorization of the museum could help the
Bush administration in its efforts to appeal to black voters.
Efforts to build a national structure dedicated to the
history and contributions of African-Americans date to a
movement started by black Civil War veterans in 1915. After
years of racially charged legislative battles over the issue,
Mr. Bush and the Republican-controlled Congress will now
be able to claim credit for gaining approval.
The museum project, advanced over the years by prominent
people like Mary McLeod Bethune, James Baldwin and Jackie
Robinson, gained momentum in 2001 when President Bush appointed
a commission to develop a comprehensive plan for it. Members
of the 23-member panel, 13 of whom attended the signing,
hailed the event as a milestone. They also acknowledged
it as the beginning of challenges.
"It feels like the real work has just begun,"
said Claudine Brown, vice chairwoman of the commission.
"We have to raise money, acquire collections, build
the museum. It's the work of a lifetime."
The museum, which planners say could take at least a decade
to build, will cost upward of $300 million, with half of
the money to come from the federal government and half from
private donors.
Though the Senate and House authorized $17 million for
the initial planning of the museum, no money for the project
has been included in the appropriations bill for 2004. Smithsonian
officials said they would need at least $3.9 million in
the first year to select a site for the museum, appoint
an advisory council and hire a director.
Mr. Lewis said he politely raised the financing issue with
the president at the signing, asking him to back up his
symbolic commitment by including money for the museum in
his 2005 budget.
Source: The
New York Times - http://www.nytimes.com/
[
return to news articles ]
|
