The National Museum of African American History and Culture is a museum that seeks to understand American history through the lens of the African American experience. The only national museum devoted exclusively to the documentation of African American life, history, and culture, it was established by Act of Congress in 2003, following decades of efforts to promote and highlight the contributions of African Americans. The Museum opened to the public on September 24, 2016, as the 19th museum of the Smithsonian Institution.

The Museum is a public institution open to all, where anyone is welcome to participate, collaborate, and learn more about African American history and culture. In the words of Lonnie G. Bunch III, founding director of the Museum, “there are few things as powerful and as important as a people, as a nation that is steeped in its history.”