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2. Telling the Complete Story of American History
Rep. Laurel Lee (FL-15): It was said earlier today that President Trump wants our parks and museums to tell an inaccurate story of American history. So I believe it's incumbent upon us to begin by actually thinking about the story of American history and whether what we pursue here today is, in fact, in any way inaccurate. We've learned that the museum has a number of directives, goals, things that we've heard about this morning, one of which in our materials is the interpretive plan to frame exhibits and curate exhibits, whatever the topic, to include a discussion of things such as race and identity, gender and sexuality, environmental change, immigration, economic inequality. And so I'd like to start with you, Mr. Gonzalez, and get back to the idea of what is an accurate or inaccurate story of American history. Would it be an inaccurate presentation of American history if our museum instead made an effort to present to those who came to see it, an interpretation that involved our founding documents like the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, the separation of powers. Would that be an inaccurate telling of American history to focus on those things?
Mike Gonzalez: Representative Lee, no, it wouldn't. I actually agreed with almost everything Representative Morelle said, until the part where you got to the Smithsonian. I think all of history should be presented. The horrors of slavery, the absolute blight that this was in our history, but also the fact that the founders created this system to deal with it, that men marched to the tune of the Battle Hymn of the Republic, saying, 'as he died to make men holy, let us die to make them free.' That inspiring story also needs to be part of the horrors of slavery.
Rep. Laurel Lee (FL-15): Correct. Not just our failures and our shortcomings, but also the efforts that were made to correct them.
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