We begin today with sorrowful news: Betye Saar has died in Los Angeles just four days before she would have turned 100. Read Associate Editor Lisa Yin Zhang’s obituary of the cherished assemblage artist, whose work inspired many.
Elsewhere, the Smithsonian is once again under fire. In the latest chapter of the Trump administration’s campaign against the DC institution, the president has ordered signs to be installed warning visitors about “extreme political activism” at the National Museum of American History (NMAH). This is not a bad dream — it is real.
“No other president has seen fit to vandalize taxpayer-funded museums with a billboard telling people not to go inside, while directing them to more politically ‘palatable’ — which is to say extreme right-wing — revisions of the historical record,” writes Ed Simon in an urgent opinion piece published today.
Also worth reading is Staff Writer Rhea Nayyar’s tier list of the most absurd questions NMAH Director Anthea Hartig was forced to field during a recent congressional hearing. “Is Mickey Mouse racist?” one Republican congressman asked her.
—Hakim Bishara, editor-in-chief
