Title 20EducationRelease 119-73

§80r Findings

Title 20 › Chapter CHAPTER 3— - SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, NATIONAL MUSEUMS AND ART GALLERIES › Subchapter SUBCHAPTER XIV— - NATIONAL MUSEUM OF AFRICAN AMERICAN HISTORY AND CULTURE › § 80r

Last updated Apr 6, 2026|Official source

Summary

Congress says the United States is seen around the world as a symbol of democracy and freedom, and that African American history is part of that story. It also finds that the Smithsonian has no national museum focused on African American life, art, history, and culture that covers periods like slavery, Reconstruction, the Harlem Renaissance, the civil rights movement, and other eras. A National Museum of African American History and Culture would collect, preserve, study, and display items that show the wide range of experiences of people of African descent in the United States.

Full Legal Text

Title 20, §80r

Education — Source: USLM XML via OLRC

Congress finds that—
(1)since its founding, the United States has grown into a symbol of democracy and freedom around the world, and the legacy of African Americans is rooted in the very fabric of the democracy and freedom of the United States;
(2)there exists no national museum within the Smithsonian Institution that—
(A)is devoted to the documentation of African American life, art, history, and culture; and
(B)encompasses, on a national level—
(i)the period of slavery;
(ii)the era of Reconstruction;
(iii)the Harlem renaissance;
(iv)the civil rights movement; and
(v)other periods associated with African American life, art, history, and culture; and
(3)a National Museum of African American History and Culture would be dedicated to the collection, preservation, research, and exhibition of African American historical and cultural material reflecting the breadth and depth of the experiences of individuals of African descent living in the United States.

Legislative History

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Short Title

Pub. L. 108–184, § 1, Dec. 16, 2003, 117 Stat. 2676, provided that: “This Act [enacting this subchapter] may be cited as the ‘National Museum of African American History and Culture Act’.”

Reference

Citations & Metadata

Citation

20 U.S.C. § 80r

Title 20Education

Last Updated

Apr 6, 2026

Release point: 119-73