Smithsonian Institution's Lonnie Bunch Resigns Amid Political Pressures
Lonnie Bunch III, the first African American secretary of the Smithsonian Institution, announced his resignation set for the end of the year. He cited personal reasons and stress from challenges posed by the Trump administration's influence on historical narratives.
Sources
In the aftermath of the September 11 attacks, former Mayor Daley's rationale for closing Meigs Field in 2003 due to security concerns was questioned; however, the public now enjoys the space at Northerly Island. Health alerts have been sent to over 700,000 Medicaid enrollees in Illinois, warning that they could lose their public health insurance as soon as October 1 due to recent legislation. Additionally, rapper Chief Keef is set to return to Chicago after a decade for a major tour, highlighting a more amicable relationship with City Hall.
The Shajareh Tayyebeh school in Minab, Iran, has become a site of mourning after a U.S. airstrike killed approximately 120 children on the first day of the war on Iran. The emotional aftermath is profound, with families coming to the shattered school to grieve and remember their lost loved ones. In related events, the U.S. military reported destroying five additional Iranian oil tankers following missile attacks on a Navy warship.
Lonnie Bunch, the head of the Smithsonian Institution and its first African American secretary, will step down by the end of the year due to pressure from President Donald Trump's administration amid increasing criticism of the institution's portrayal of US history. The Trump administration has threatened to cut funding and has ordered probes into the Smithsonian for allegedly promoting “anti-American ideology,” particularly concerning issues such as racism and colonialism in its exhibitions. As a result, Trump has sought changes in leadership to align the Smithsonian more closely with his administration’s views on American exceptionalism and has focused on erasing what he deems a leftist bias in cultural institutions.
Lonnie Bunch III, the Smithsonian Institution's first African American secretary, will retire at the end of the year due to personal reasons and the stress stemming from Donald Trump's attacks on the museum’s content and independence. Throughout his tenure, which began in 2019, Bunch faced significant pressure from the Trump administration, including an executive order in March 2025 that claimed the museum was influenced by a "divisive, race-centered ideology." Bunch's replacement will be chosen by the Smithsonian’s 17-member board of regents, which includes John Roberts, the chief justice of the Supreme Court, and has not yet filled three expired terms from Trump’s administration.