Lonnie Bunch, secretary of the Smithsonian Institution since 2019, is stepping down at the end of the year
He announced the decision in a news release, describing it as one made “with very mixed emotions and heartfelt gratitude.” The move follows a contentious period in which the Trump administration sought to reshape how Smithsonian museums and other cultural institutions present U.S. history.
The departure comes two months after a White House report labeled Smithsonian leaders—particularly those at the National Museum of American History—as radical activists who could not be trusted. That report, from the White House Domestic Policy Council, criticized the museum’s leadership for failing to present history “in a way that is inspiring, unifying, and worthy of our great republic.” Anthea M. Hartig, the museum’s first female director, came under particular scrutiny from Trump and other Republicans over the summer as a result.
The Administration's push to rewrite history particularly targeted minority groups such as African Americans, Hispanics and women.
Bunch became the secretary of the institution under the first Trump Administration and did not encounter the resistance he faced in the second. Recently, Smithsonian's were notified of possible funding cuts.
The 73-year-old bunch is the founder of the Smithsonian Museum of African American History and Culture.