Over fall break, I spent time researching colleges, including two HBCUs (historically black colleges and universities): Howard and Hampton University. Howard, located in Washington, D.C., was close to the National Museum of African American History and Culture, which I visited. The museum has several floors, each dedicated to a different part of African American history and culture, including the Sweet Home Cafe, which takes inspiration from soul food.
On level four, the museum features the culture galleries section. This section highlights African Americans who have shaped pop culture through music, dance, art, television, theater, and film. Artists like John Coltrane and Louis Armstrong were highlighted as pioneers for African Americans in the music industry, while the museum also showcased Michael Jackson and people who championed a new sound in hip hop, like Kurtis Blow and Tupac Shakur. Actors like Morgan Freeman, Denzel Washington, and Viola Davis were front-stage figures who transcended the way the media portrayed African Americans. This section of the museum was my favorite because it honored the African American experience and struggle that shaped so many crafts.
Level three of the museum is the community gallery section, which spotlights how African Americans have taken over sports on the national and international stage. The section includes the stories of acclaimed athletes and activists like Muhammad Ali, Jesse Owens, Venus and Serena Williams, and LeBron James. These athletes have blazed trails for today’s African American athletes. Muhammad Ali stood up for his civil rights. He refused to fight for the United States military because it did not align with his religious beliefs and was in opposition to the racial inequality that African Americans were facing in the country at the time. This inequality is also reflected in the section across the hall from the sports section, dedicated to the African American military experience.
The last section I explored in the limited time I had in the vast museum was the concourse, home to an Emmit Till memorial, the Sweet Home Cafe, and several other galleries. The Emmit Till memorial is an emotional experience that really demonstrates how dangerous it could be as an African American in the South. Emmit Till was violently lynched by a group of white men after a woman falsely accused him of harassment. Emmit Till was only fourteen years old when he was murdered.
My favorite part of my trip to the museum was the Sweet Home Cafe, which served soul food for days—fried chicken, collard greens, catfish, oxtail, banana pudding, and barbecue. The food was amazing, and I couldn’t help but go back for seconds. Overall, the trip let me fully immerse myself in African American culture and learn more about how far we have come in this country.
