Black Churches Back Embattled Smithsonian African American History Museum After Trump's Order

As he does one day each month, the Rev. Robert Turner hit the road from his home in Baltimore last week and traveled - on foot - 43 miles 69 kilometers to Washington.

He arrived by evening on April 16 outside the White House , carrying a sign that called for for "Reparations Now."

This time, Turner added another stop on his long day's journey - the National Museum of African American History and Culture .

Turner knelt in prayer and laid a wreath at the entrance of the museum in support of its mission, which incurred President Donald Trump's criticism alongside other Smithsonian Institution sites. In a March 27 executive order , Trump alleged that Smithsonian exhibits had disparaged the nation's history via a "divisive, race-centered ideology."

Turner wanted to show support for the museum, which opened in 2016 and received its 10 millionth visitor in 2023. The museum tells the history of chattel slavery, Jim Crow segregation and its lingering effects, but it also highlights the determination, successes and contributions of Black Americans and Black institutions.