Lonnie G. Bunch III

The Smithsonian’s first update to its collection policy in 20 years proposes ethical returns and shared ownership. But will it bring transformational change?

The discovery carries intense, personal meaning for an Alabama community of descendants of the ship's survivors.

The Smithsonian museum’s collection of human remains contains dozens of brains from vulnerable Washington, D.C., residents, many taken without consent.

The Smithsonian’s human brains collection was led by Ales Hrdlicka, a museum curator in the 1900s who believed that White people were superior.

Efforts to rescue African American burial grounds and remains have exposed deep conflicts over inheritance and representation.

The beloved line of fictional characters taught children about American history and encouraged them to realize their potential.

Textbooks can be revised, but historic sites, monuments, and collections that memorialize ugly pasts aren’t so easily changed.