WASHINGTON (AURN News) — The Smithsonian will enter its growing confrontation with the Trump administration under new leadership next year. Smithsonian Secretary Lonnie Bunch III announced Tuesday that he will retire at the end of 2026.
His announcement follows months of White House efforts to influence how Smithsonian museums address slavery, race and America’s historical failures.
The administration has reviewed exhibits, accused Smithsonian leaders of promoting political ideology and threatened to limit federal cooperation with the institution.
Bunch said those pressures did not drive his decision, although he acknowledged that leading the Smithsonian through the dispute has been stressful.
The historian became the Smithsonian’s first Black secretary in 2019. Before taking the Smithsonian’s highest office, he spent years building the National Museum of African American History and Culture from an idea into one of Washington’s most significant cultural institutions.
Click play to listen to the report from AURN White House Correspondent Ebony McMorris. For more news, follow @ebonymcmorris & @aurnonline.
