Trump to visit National African American Museum: report
President-elect Donald Trump is expected to visit the National Museum of African American History and Culture on Martin Luther King Jr. Day, ABC News reported Saturday citing transition sources.
Trump’s visit to the museum comes amid backlash from Democrats and some Republicans over Trump claiming in tweets Saturday that Rep. John Lewis (D-Ga.) was “all talk” and “no action.”
Lewis said in an interview released Friday that he didn’t think Trump was a “legitimate president,” pointing to Russia’s meddling in the 2016 presidential election.
Trump’s inauguration was already expected to be the focus of protests, and about 2,000 demonstrators led by Rev. Al Sharpton took to the National Mall on Saturday calling for Democrats in Congress to stand up to Trump and protect President Obama’s legacy.
Obama encouraged Trump to visit the National Museum of African American History in September during the campaign after Trump claimed that the African-American community was “in the worst shape that they’ve ever been in before.”
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“I think that even most 8-year-olds will tell you that whole slavery thing wasn’t very good for black people, Jim Crow wasn’t very good for black people,” Obama said at the time during an interview on “Good Morning America.”
“What we have to do is use our history to propel us to make even more progress in the future.”
The creation of the museum was heavily influenced by Lewis, who led the effort to pass legislation to establish a National Museum of African American History and Culture. Lewis worked on the project for 15 years.
Trump praised the museum at a rally in September, shortly after it opened, although he has not yet visited the newest Smithsonian museum.
“It’s a really beautiful place,” Trump said then. “I saw it the other day in going around Washington and it looked beautiful. And we’re all really proud of it, I can tell you that.”
“We congratulate and honor those involved with the project and recognize today the incredible contributions of the African-American community to this nation.”
– Brooke Seipel contributed