Arts & Entertainment
Smithsonian Head Lonnie Bunch on Preserving History, Retirement and Trump Administration Threats
Lonnie Bunch knows a thing or two about history, and he’s made a fair bit of it himself.
Bunch earned a Ph.D. in African American history from American University while working as an adjunct lecturer. He went on to hold numerous teaching positions, including at the University of Massachusetts and George Washington University.
In 2019, Bunch was named secretary of the Smithsonian Institution, becoming the first African American and first historian in the position. As secretary, he oversees 20 museums and the National Zoo as well as several libraries and research centers.
Earlier this month, Bunch announced he’ll be stepping down from the position at the end of the year.
Bunch joined “Chicago Tonight” to discuss making history, threats from the federal government and the search for his successor.
On his retirement:
Bunch started his career at the Smithsonian Institution at the National Air and Space Museum in 1978. He took on a new role with the institution in 2005 to lead the development of the National Museum of African American History and Culture, which was completed in 2016.
“I always want to be there to help the Smithsonian, protect the Smithsonian, support the Smithsonian, so it’s really with mixed emotions that I’m leaving,” Bunch said. “But also, after almost 40 years, it’s time.”
On threats from the federal government:
In 2025, President Donald Trump signed an executive order titled “Restoring Truth and Sanity to American History.” The order claims the Smithsonian’s museums feature a “distorted narrative driven by ideology rather than truth” and said the institution “seeks to undermine the remarkable achievements of the United States.” Later that year, the Trump administration ordered an internal review of the Smithsonian’s content and threatened to cut the institution’s federal funding. Last week, the administration announced plans to add temporary signs outside the National Museum of American History warning visitors of “radical ideologies.”
Bunch said his retirement is unrelated to Trump’s actions.
“I don’t know why this is being done,” Bunch said. “All I can tell you is the Smithsonian is driven by scholarship, by integrity. Its job in some ways is to be a reservoir of history, art and culture that the public can dip into for clarity, for candor, for understanding and for a little bit of hope. … I think in some ways, you can’t understand America without understanding how it’s grappled with challenges. For me, understanding the complexity of the past helps us really sort of understand how we as a nation have evolved and grown and been made better.”
On leading the development of the National Museum of African American History and Culture:
“America’s history is too big for one building,” Bunch said. “The African American story is both of a community but it is also a story of the nation. So I wanted it to be part of the Smithsonian because here is where millions of people will come to explore questions, issues, exhibits that they might not do in their own town. But because they’re coming to the Smithsonian, it’s a great educational opportunity.”
On his work in Chicago:
Before returning to the Smithsonian to lead the development of the National Museum of African American History and Culture, Bunch worked as the president and director of the Chicago Historical Society, now known as the Chicago History Museum.
“Chicago’s the best, there’s no doubt about it,” Bunch said. “Chicago taught me how to be a better fundraiser, how to be a better leader, it was my first time running a museum. So I give a lot of credit to the city of Chicago, to the way this city embraced me, taught me about history and basically said, ‘You’ve got good ideas, let’s try ‘em.’”
On what’s next:
“I want to help museums around the world tell the stories they want to tell,” Bunch said. “I’ll probably do a little teaching at some university that may wanna hire me. But the real joy is, I want to spend time with my grandkids that live in Chicago. So that’s really the key for me, spending more time in Chicago.”
